The economical situation is constantly changing and competition is forcing companies to become more innovative than ever. Family businesses are thought to be less innovative and stagnant compared to other organizations. Yet, they manage to survive and thrive in this competitive world. Some family businesses have been able to use their unique traditions to obtain competitive advantage. The purpose of this study is to gain insight how family businesses are leveraging on their traditions and how different governing styles affect the process of innovation. Thus, the research question we are trying to answer is How are family businesses with different governance styles exploiting their traditions in their product innovations? This qualitative study is conducted by using case study strategy consisting of a total eight case companies. The data is collected from semi-structured interviews and secondary data. The analysis of the collected data is conducted in five steps, and patterns are formed based on the analysis. Our results showed that companies behaving according to the agency theory perceived tradition as something static. Thus, did not fully take advantage of it. Family businesses behaving according to the stewardship Theory perceived tradition as dynamic and were able to reinterpret it to use it in their product innovation process.