DIGITAL CAPABILITIES AND PERFORMANCE OF RETAIL OUTLETS IN LAGOS, NIGERIA.

The ability of retail outlets to adapt and leverage digital technologies has become a key driver of sustainable performance in today’s rapidly evolving digital economy. The capacities of digital tools in different fields have continued to be at the centre of scholarly attention. Previous research have focused more on high-income economies; there is limited scholarly research on how digital transformation operates in developing economies where infrastructural gaps, weak policy support, and low digital literacy persist. This study investigated the influence of digital capabilities, infrastructure, skills training and innovation, on the performance of retail outlets in Lagos, Nigeria, with a view to examining digital transformation of retail outlets, focusing on key performance indicators such as operational efficiency, profitability, and customer loyalty and addressing the challenge of underperformance and uneven use of digital technologies among Nigerian retail outlets. Descriptive design was employed. An integrative theoretical framework, drawing on the Resource-Based View, Dynamic Capabilities Theory, Technology-Organisation-Environment model, and Innovation Diffusion Theory, was employed. Data were collected using questionnaires which were distributed to 355 employees across four retail outlets: Jendol, Justrite, SPAR, and Addide, which were selected purposively. Data were subjected to descriptive statistics, correlation, and regression analyses. Digital innovation had the strongest influence on customer loyalty, while digital skills training played critical role in driving operational efficiency. Findings in the study highlight the importance of deliberate investments in digital capacity building and infrastructure development, giving insights to retail managers, policymakers, and educators of the need for well-supported digital skills and innovation drive to close performance gaps and foster sustainable growth in organisations. Keywords: Digital capabilities, Retail outlets, Digital infrastructure, Digital skills training, Customer loyalty Word Count: 259