Showing papers in "Entrepreneurship and Regional Development in 2011"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine whether there is a transatlantic divide in the way social entrepreneurship is conceived and defined, and present the different geographical perspectives of social entrepreneurship in North American and European literatures.
Abstract: Social entrepreneurship has recently received greater recognition from the public sector, as well as from scholars. However, the lack of a unifying paradigm in the field has lead to a proliferation of definitions. Moreover, several approaches of the phenomenon, as well as different schools of thought, have emerged in different regions of the world. At first glance, because of different conceptions of capitalism and of the government's role, there seems to be a difference between the American and the European conceptions of social entrepreneurship. The objective of this paper is to clarify the concepts of ‘social entrepreneurship’, ‘social entrepreneur’ and ‘social entrepreneurship organization’ and to examine whether there is a transatlantic divide in the way these are conceived and defined. After having justified the need for a definition, we present the different geographical perspectives. North American and European literatures on social entrepreneurship are critically analysed by means of Gartner's fo...
753 citations
TL;DR: In this article, an entrepreneurial intention model is developed, theoretically based on the planned behaviour approach, institutional economic theory and social capital theory, to identify some of the environmental cognitive elements that may explain regional differences in start-up intentions.
Abstract: Empirical research has recently paid considerable attention to the role of environmental factors in explaining regional variations in entrepreneurial activity. However, cognitive models have not usually included these factors in their analyses. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to identify some of the environmental cognitive elements that may explain regional differences in start-up intentions. Thus, an entrepreneurial intention model is developed, theoretically based on the planned behaviour approach, institutional economic theory and social capital theory. The empirical analysis is carried out using structural equation techniques over a sample of 549 final year university students from two Spanish regions (Catalonia and Andalusia). Results confirm that valuation of entrepreneurship in each region helps explain regional differences in entrepreneurial intentions. As expected, social valuation of the entrepreneur was higher in the more developed region (Catalonia), positively affecting perceiv...
526 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that enterprises can be understood primarily in terms of their social bases and that the social base of community enterprise lies in community of some kind, and argue that CBE is only one form of community enterprises.
Abstract: This paper argues that enterprises can be understood primarily in terms of their social bases and that the social base of community enterprise lies in community of some kind. It reviews current conceptualizations in this area such as ‘community-based enterprise’ (CBE) and ‘social enterprise’, and argues that CBE is only one form of community enterprise. Community entrepreneurs are understood in terms of their position on a continuum of community participation, as economic/social/political activists, and community enterprise is explained largely in terms of the balance of social capital functions served by its overall activity. The relationship between membership of a community enterprise and membership of a community is explored, and represented in terms of two criteria: the pool from which enterprise members are drawn and the rule by which such members are selected from the pool. This paper illustrates its arguments in relation to two English community enterprises, Coin Street Community Builders based in...
201 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigate how firm-specific resources and entrepreneurial orientation of the firm may influence performance in small farm-based ventures, based on theoretical strands from the resource-based and entrepreneurship perspectives.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to investigate how firm-specific resources and entrepreneurial orientation (EO) of the firm may influence performance in small farm-based ventures. It builds upon theoretical strands from the resource-based and entrepreneurship perspectives. Research within these fields indicates that these relationships might be dependent on the context within which the firm operates. Hypotheses are developed to test the possible effect of entrepreneurial efforts and resources (financial position, farm size, location, network and unique competence) on short- and long-term performance. Data gathered in 2003 and 2006 from farms engaged in innovative ventures were used to test the hypotheses. The results show that financial capacity, unique competence and entrepreneurial efforts influence performance in the investigated firms. This suggests that firms do get paid back in the long run for engaging in entrepreneurial efforts. Thus, entrepreneurial activities and attitudes represent an important fa...
191 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors draw on the concepts of effectuation, improvisation, prior knowledge and networks to study the early internationalization of new ventures operating in the Irish Shellfish sector.
Abstract: How do entrepreneurs identify foreign market opportunities and how do they identify foreign market(s) and customers? We draw on the concepts of effectuation, improvisation, prior knowledge and networks to study the early internationalization of new ventures operating in the Irish Shellfish sector. We argue that the internationalization process was strongly influenced by two ‘resources to hand’: the entrepreneurs’ idiosyncratic prior knowledge and their prior social and business ties. We observe an effectuation logic and extensive improvisation in the internationalization process of these new ventures.
173 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the extent to which regional policy in less competitive regions is accounting for issues relating to entrepreneurship and enterprise development as a tool for improving regional competitiveness and find that entrepreneurship policy at the regional level is multidimensional, with policies broadly ranging from those that are either economically or socially driven.
Abstract: Regions have gained a position at the forefront of the economic development policy agenda. However, the regional approach to economic strategy remains contested. This paper tests the extent to which regional policy in less competitive regions is accounting for issues relating to entrepreneurship and enterprise development as a tool for improving regional competitiveness. It does so by examining policies undertaken by the UK Labour government 1997–2010, drawing on interviews with policy makers and an analysis of relevant policy documents. This paper finds that entrepreneurship policy at the regional level is multidimensional, with policies broadly ranging from those that are either economically or socially driven. Although there is a considerable policy activity in these areas across less competitive regions, enterprise policy making remains relatively undifferentiated across the regions. There are a number of evolutions in regional policy occurring, especially a shift from policies relating to the facilit...
171 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a contextual analysis of the development of new migrant enterprises within London is presented, which is based on the concept of "superdiversity" to understand how elements of ethnicity, migratory status and a range of other variables interplay with wider economi...
Abstract: This article aims to contribute towards an improved empirical and conceptual understanding of the recent dramatic growth in migrant enterprises within London. Taking as its starting point the emergence of increasingly diverse populations within many urban and regional contexts, the article draws upon the concept of ‘superdiversity’ to develop a contextual analysis of the development of new migrant enterprise. In the absence of existing data, the research method combines secondary materials with primary observational and interview data in relation to six new arrival communities. The results provide a description of the changing context for migrant business within London, mapping the emergence of new forms and geographies of enterprise. The analysis is developed through an examination of processes of business start up and growth, and integration into institutional and regulatory frameworks, to demonstrate how elements of ethnicity, migratory status and a range of other variables interplay with wider economi...
135 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the formation of new firms resulting from the break-away of human resources from existing district firms (spin-offs) is considered as a particular form of knowledge transfer and production within districts.
Abstract: Adopting a knowledge-based perspective, this study develops a framework of how Italian industrial districts (IDs) operate and evolve as cognitive systems. First, we analyse the mechanisms that facilitate knowledge diffusion across firms within IDs, the enabler of cross-firm knowledge transfer (absorptive capacity) and the process of producing new knowledge by combination. Within this analysis, we consider the formation of new firms resulting from the break-away of human resources from existing district firms (spin-offs) as a particular form of knowledge transfer and production within districts. Knowledge production by combination may take place not only within boundaries of IDs, but also involve external sources. We suggest that innovations made by combining internal and external knowledge have played an important role in shaping the evolutionary trajectories of IDs. Finally, again from the cognitive perspective, we address the issue of how globalization impacts on district systems, concentrating on the p...
133 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyse the representation of women's entrepreneurship in German media, by analyzing how it is depicted in newspapers and how this changes over time, and they contribute to developing an understanding of the relevance of media representation of the entrepreneurship phenomenon for influencing the propensity towards entrepreneurial activity.
Abstract: Despite extensive attempts to enhance women's entrepreneurship in Germany, a gender gap continues to exist. This article sets out to analyse the representation of women's entrepreneurship in German media, by analysing how it is depicted in newspapers and how this changes over time. Images transported in media might regulate the nature of women's entrepreneurship, as they contain information about ‘typical’ and ‘socially desirable’ behaviour of women as well as of entrepreneurs. This article contributes to developing an understanding of the relevance of media representation of the entrepreneurship phenomenon for influencing the propensity towards entrepreneurial activity.
128 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors take stock of central themes in entrepreneurship research at and across different geographic scales, the preferred sources of data and information as well as methodological approaches, discuss the shifting interest of research over time and sketch out theoretical and methodological challenges for further research.
Abstract: During the past two decades, interdisciplinary oriented entrepreneurship research focused increasingly on spatial aspects of entrepreneurial activities and support policies. This paper takes stock of central themes in entrepreneurship research at and across different geographic scales, the preferred sources of data and information as well as methodological approaches. It sets out to discuss the shifting interest of research over time and to sketch out theoretical and methodological challenges for further research. This paper is based on a review of 18 international journals in small business and entrepreneurship research, economic geography, regional economics and neighbouring sciences for the period 1990–2007. Altogether, 348 relevant articles were identified, read and classified. The analysis reveals that the entrepreneur's socio-spatial contexts in which they operate on a daily basis are still absent from much of the entrepreneurship debate. We suggest intensifying research efforts on the linkage betwe...
125 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a power-laden process that reflects normative expectations imposed by field incumbents on entrants to the field that require them to both comply with and challenge existing field arrangements is considered.
Abstract: This paper theorises about a specific facet of social entrepreneurship, namely, the integration of disadvantaged persons into the field of entrepreneurship. Drawing from Bourdieu's theory of practice, the authors conceive of this integration as a power-laden process that reflects normative expectations imposed by field incumbents on entrants to the field that require them to both comply with and challenge existing field arrangements. Propositions outline the desirability and ability of disadvantaged persons to meet these expectations.
TL;DR: In this article, actor-network theory is used to develop the creation view and further our understanding of entrepreneurial processes, which is a fully developed theoretical alternative to the discovery view, however, there is still a heated debate on the nature of opportunities.
Abstract: Entrepreneurship scholars argue that opportunities are at the heart of entrepreneurial activity. Yet, there is still a heated debate on the nature of opportunities. The discovery view argues that opportunities are discovered and have objective existence prior to the entrepreneurial process. The creation view argues that the discovery view is incomplete and makes wrongful assumptions about agency, process and opportunities in entrepreneurship. More conceptual development, however, is needed for the creation view to become a fully developed theoretical alternative to the discovery view. In this article, Actor-Network Theory is used to develop the creation view and further our understanding of entrepreneurial processes.
TL;DR: In this paper, community-based, social and societal entrepreneurship have increased in importance in the past decade as globally more people and organizations are interested in issues related to how to encourage and support them.
Abstract: Community-based, social and societal entrepreneurship have increased in importance in the past decade as globally more people and organizations are interested in issues related to how to encourage ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a multi-layered relational framework of entrepreneurial learning by embedding the conceptual tools of a continental thinker, Pierre Bourdieu, in a social constructionist paradigmatic approach.
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to present a multi-layered relational framework of entrepreneurial learning by embedding the conceptual tools of a continental thinker, Pierre Bourdieu, in a social constructionist paradigmatic approach. Through a longitudinal study based on participant observation and in-depth qualitative interviews, entrepreneurial learning processes of five nascent entrepreneurs who have formed a venture team have been examined as a case study. Relational qualities of entrepreneurial learning can be illuminated by exploring dispositions and different forms of capital that nascent entrepreneurs hold at the micro-individual level, which are inextricably linked to the meso-relational level of developing an entrepreneurial habitus as they navigate through the process of business venturing. Such a multi-layered conceptualisation of entrepreneurial learning transcends individual-, team-, firm- and network-level analyses of the subject by generating insights from both micro- and meso-layers.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present empirical results of a qualitative study into local government authorities in the United Kingdom and draw out a range of enablers and barriers for sourcing from small and medium-sized enterprises that were perceived by procurement managers.
Abstract: Public procurement in industrialized nations accounts for a significant share of gross domestic product; hence it is imperative for local, regional and national economic development to utilize this potential. However, previous discussions of entrepreneurship and small business policy have by and large marginalized public sector procurement. As a contribution to giving greater salience to the linkages between regional development, entrepreneurship and public procurement, this paper presents empirical results of a qualitative study into local government authorities in the United Kingdom. In particular, it draws out a range of enablers and barriers for sourcing from small- and medium-sized enterprises that were perceived by procurement managers. The focus on public sector procurement furthermore leads to a more systematic theoretical elaboration of entrepreneurship policy as being based on legal authority or the market or network effects from geographic proximity.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed the case of a successful young high technology cluster in an old industrialized European region, the electronics and information and communications technology (ICT) cluster in the Basque Country (Spain).
Abstract: This article analyses the case of a successful young high technology cluster in an old industrialized European region, the electronics and information and communications technology cluster in the Basque Country (Spain). Based on the findings of this case study, we propose that social capital and internationalization play an important role in increasing the absorptive capacity of clusters (thus, the capacity of a cluster to absorb, diffuse and creatively exploit extra-cluster knowledge), and hence, in sustaining their growth and dynamism. Absorptive capacity depends on the capacity of firms to establish intra- and extra-cluster knowledge linkages. We put forward in this article the fact that social capital fosters intra-cluster knowledge linkages, and cluster's internationalization the extra-cluster knowledge ones. Therefore, social capital and internationalization are key elements to increase the absorptive capacity of a cluster and its growth. Given the accumulative, path- and place-dependent nature of s...
TL;DR: In this paper, the structural and social features identified in previous studies as likely correlates of business network success are considered. But knowledge about what contributes to the success of business networks themselves is less extensive and based primarily on case studies or reports of network directors.
Abstract: Business networks, formal arrangements between independent businesses established to enhance member success, are generally accepted as an important strategy to help small businesses survive and prosper, and to promote regional economic development. However, knowledge about what contributes to the success of business networks themselves is less extensive and based primarily on case studies or reports of network directors. The purpose of this paper is to partially address this shortcoming. We consider the structural and social features identified in previous studies as likely correlates of business network success. Using a social constructionist definition of network success, we distinguish successful from less successful networks from among a sample of 29 industry and community business networks in the USA. Findings from interviews with 1122 members and 29 network leaders suggest that trust is central to understanding network success. Structural features have complex positive and negative indirect effects ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined how bootstrapping compensated for their inability to obtain debt or equity funding, and found that social capital (strong, weak and brokerage ties) is important for access to bootstrapped resources.
Abstract: Over 7 years, the UK-Government funded an entrepreneurship scholarship scheme in the most deprived regions of England. This study examines how, for 211 of these nascent entrepreneurs, bootstrapping compensated for their inability to obtain debt or equity funding. Results show that social capital (strong, weak and brokerage ties) is important for access to bootstrapped resources. While human capital, including previous business experience and financial skills, are linked to joint-utilisation approaches to bootstrapping, higher financial investment is linked to owner- and payment-related approaches. A key outcome for developing appropriate regional policy is that ‘brokers’ provide a link between socially disadvantaged entrepreneurs and external resources.
TL;DR: The authors empirically investigated the association between bootstrap strategies used at startup and subsequent venture growth and found that new ventures that use more owner funds, employ more interim personnel, encourage customers to pay more quickly, and apply for more subsidy programs exhibit higher growth over time.
Abstract: While bootstrap finance is widely used in entrepreneurial ventures, both scholars and practitioners have presented conflicting views on the relation between financial bootstrapping and venture growth. This article empirically investigates the association between bootstrap strategies used at startup and subsequent venture growth. For this purpose, we use a longitudinal database comprising data from both questionnaires and financial accounts of 214 new ventures. Findings demonstrate that the association between financial bootstrapping and venture growth is either nonexistent or positive. More specifically, new ventures that use more owner funds, employ more interim personnel, encourage customers to pay more quickly, and apply for more subsidy programs exhibit higher growth over time. We discuss the managerial and policy implications of these results and suggest avenues for future research.
TL;DR: This paper conducted interviews with reindeer herders from two ethnic communities in Finland and found that respondents who identified themselves as ethnic Finns viewed their self-employment as an individualistic form of entrepreneurship and they focused their discussion on matters related to financial capital and profit.
Abstract: Every reindeer herder in Finland belongs to one of 56 co-operatives, each known as a paliskunta. In addition, some reindeer owners herd using the folkloric siida model of co-operation. Content analysis of interviews conducted with reindeer herders – referred to as reindeer husbandry entrepreneurs, by the Reindeer Herders’ Association – from two ethnic communities in Finland, reveals that respondents who identified themselves as ethnic Finns viewed their self-employment as an individualistic form of entrepreneurship and they focused their discussion on matters related to financial capital and profit. In contrast, Sami respondents claimed that a significant causal variable behind their herding was maintenance of a cultural tradition and not necessarily limited to the maximization of financial profits. Sami respondents spoke much about their cooperative siida (a fluid, informal grouping of herders who voluntarily co-operate), and the social capital it involved; and about reindeer herding skills that are acqu...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the relevance of the CRA framework in analysing the development and functioning of the marine biotechnology industry in Tromso, which is a fairly peripheral region in Norway.
Abstract: The idea of constructing regional advantage (CRA) has recently been emphasized by scholars as a new way for firms to gain competitiveness in a globalizing learning economy. The rationale behind the idea is that advantages in a regional industry can be constructed by proactive public–private partnership. This article uses, and examines the relevance of, the CRA framework in analysing the development and functioning of the marine biotechnology industry in Tromso, which is a fairly peripheral region in Norway. Despite the fact that much effort has been put into education and R&D at the University of Tromso and related research institutes, and the fact that many public policy tools have intended to create a blooming marine biotechnology industry in the area, the results have so far been meagre. This article explains the rather weak results in terms of the number of firms and jobs in the marine biotechnology industry in Tromso as being due to a lack of synthetic knowledge on how to industrialize research resul...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the financing of high-tech SMEs in China at different stages of business development, focusing on distinguishing different financing methods according to particular stages of an SME's business life cycle.
Abstract: This article examines the financing of high-tech Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in China at different stages of business development, based on a survey of 74 face-to-face interviews with high-tech SMEs and additional nine informal face-to-face interviews with bank and government officials in the two Chinese provinces of Guangdong and Guangxi. Attention is focused on distinguishing different financing methods according to particular stages of an SME's business life cycle. The findings show the importance of informal financial sources from individuals and firms’ employees for high-tech SMEs at all three development stages. Such sources have become a central aspect of the financial infrastructure for the private sector in China. The article distinguishes between the alternative methods or practices used by firms at all three stages, seeking to either overcome particular financial constraints or to avoid the commitment of large capital investments in relatively long-term projects. It identifies the...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that regional deregulation plays a significant role in China's entrepreneurial growth because it stimulates free markets and lifts predatory and discriminatory regulatory policies affecting entrepreneurship, and they use provincial-level panel data (1998-2003) for hypothesis testing.
Abstract: Despite a less favourable national institutional environment, the private entrepreneurial sector has developed rapidly in China's transition economy. To resolve this puzzle, this study argues that regional deregulation plays a significant role in China's entrepreneurial growth because it stimulates free markets and lifts predatory and discriminatory regulatory policies affecting entrepreneurship. I use provincial-level panel data (1998–2003) for hypothesis testing. The results, based on fixed effects estimation, suggest that deregulation indeed has a significantly positive effect on entrepreneurial growth within regions. In addition, this effect is found to be stronger in earlier years, as well as among less developed, inland regions.
TL;DR: In this paper, an affect-based theory of entrepreneurial entrepreneurship education is proposed, which brings together provocation, deterritorialization (uprooting) and decoding/imagination, which calls for both critique and creativity.
Abstract: This essay develops an affect-based theory of entrepreneurial entrepreneurship education, something we summarise in a model of provocation-based entrepreneurial entrepreneurship education (the E3 model). Taking its starting point in an anecdote that illustrates the importance of provocation in processes of learning entrepreneurship, this article responds to previous calls for less economised entrepreneurship education focusing on its creative-relational nature. An affect-based theory of E3 brings together provocation, deterritorialisation (uprooting) and decoding/imagination, which calls for both critique and creativity, and resonates with appreciations of paralogy as driver in learning processes. The implications of this conceptual model of learning entrepreneurship entrepreneurially are discussed, with particular focus on the role of the pedagogue and on the future of learning entrepreneurship.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors assess the relative importance of these determinants for differences in the share of employment creation from new firms at the level of municipalities for the period of 1999-2006 in the Netherlands.
Abstract: Within the recent literature on the geography of new firm formation, much attention is given to the role of regional knowledge sources based on the Knowledge Spillover Theory of Entrepreneurship. At the same time, several other studies show the importance of agglomeration economies for new firm formation. The goal of this study is to assess the relative importance of these determinants for differences in the share of employment creation from new firms at the level of municipalities for the period of 1999–2006 in the Netherlands. It is found that the traditional drivers of new firm formation, such as economic growth and agglomeration effects, have a much stronger effect on new firm formation compared to measures of the regional knowledge base. Moreover, it is shown that when not correcting for the presence of agglomeration effects, the role of local knowledge resources is easily over-estimated, pointing to the dangers of misspecifications of models. The results imply that the knowledge spillover theory of ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors look into Bengt Johannisson's experiments with enactive research in the so-called Anamorphosis Project, which was based on the assumption that to understand entrepreneurship, researchers themselves must enact an entrepreneurial process and reflect upon it by engaging in auto-ethnography.
Abstract: In this article, I look into Bengt Johannisson's experiments with enactive research in the so-called Anamorphosis Project. This methodological experiment was based on the assumption that to understand entrepreneurship, researchers themselves must enact an entrepreneurial process and reflect upon it by engaging in auto-ethnography. By connecting aesthetics and politics, this experiment guides us in seeing methodologies as more than just tools – actually as in(ter)ventions or inventive forms of intervening vis-a-vis societal or community issues. By conceptualizing the performance of scholarship as involving practices of enacting and engaging, I suggest entrepreneurship scholars to take into account the ontological politics of method and to anticipate what can be called methodological experimentation. Drawing upon non-representational theory and actor-network theory, I flesh out the notion of in(ter)vention by emphasizing both its performative and participative dimension.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined factors associated with financial distress among 1006 Spanish manufacturings (SMEs), distinguishing high and low technology industries, using industrial organizational theory through the Porter's five competitive forces model (external factors) and the resource based view through strategic variables (internal factors), such as training, planning, innovation, technology and quality.
Abstract: This article examines factors associated with financial distress among 1006 Spanish manufacturings (SMEs), distinguishing high and low technology industries. Financial distress is analysed using industrial organizational theory through the Porter's five competitive forces model (external factors) and the resource based view through strategic variables (internal factors), such as training, planning, innovation, technology and quality. Two different sources of information were used in the study: Qualitative information related to environmental conditions and strategic variables was gathered through a questionnaire addressed to the firm manager. Quantitative information to identify whether the firm was in financial distress was gathered from the balance sheets and earning statements of the firms. Evidence from this study shows that environmental conditions and some strategic variables are associated with financial distress. The results found that young SMEs with low technology and in a highly competitive env...
TL;DR: The authors discuss how Bengt's theoretical and methodological sensitivity to context has provided a strong legacy for the entrepreneurship field, not least because it has opened up possibilities for innovative research methodologies that locate the researcher as situated actor but also because it emphasises participative and relational forms of entrepreneurial action that reshape or transform self-other boundaries.
Abstract: Long before the current vogue for acknowledging contexts and contextualisation processes in the research process, Johannisson's pioneering scholarship provoked different conceptual and methodological experimentations that were oriented to context. Bengt's unceasing curiosity for understanding how particular localities, communities, networks, industrial districts, regions and families produce embed and enact entrepreneurial activities is a testament to his belief in the importance of the ‘organising context’ for entrepreneurship. In this study, I discuss how Bengt's theoretical and methodological sensitivity to context has provided a strong legacy for the entrepreneurship field, not least because it has opened up possibilities for innovative research methodologies that locate the researcher as situated actor but also because it emphasises participative and relational forms of entrepreneurial action that reshape or transform self-other boundaries.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore how CAs and entrepreneurs act in concert to mold innovative ideas into plausible business plans that make sense to venture fund investors, drawing upon empirical evidence.
Abstract: For high-technology entrepreneurs, attaining an appropriate level of investment to support new ventures is challenging as substantial investment is usually required prior to revenue generation. Consequently, entrepreneurs must present their firms as investment ready in the context of an uncertain market response and an absence of any trading history. Gaining tenancy within a business incubator can be advantageous to this process given that placement enhances entrepreneurial contact with potential investors whilst professional client advisors (CAs) use their expertise to assist in the development of a credible business plan. However, for the investment proposal to be successful, it must make sense to fund managers despite their lack of technological expertise and product knowledge. Thus, this article explores how incubator CAs and entrepreneurs act in concert to mould innovative ideas into plausible business plans that make sense to venture fund investors. To illustrate this process, we draw upon empirical...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the social interactions and spatial practices of young businesspeople, the so-called culturepreneurs, and the networking activities they use to form professional scenes in the field of design production in Berlin's cultural industries.
Abstract: This article discusses the social interactions and spatial practices of young businesspeople, the so-called ‘culturepreneurs’, and the networking activities they use to form professional scenes in the field of design production in Berlin's cultural industries. This article primarily deals with a problem currently facing entrepreneurship and creative industries: how do young start-up entrepreneurs overcome structural paradoxes between individual professionalization and competitiveness on the one hand, while improving their entrepreneurial performances by depending on a badly needed innovation climate provided in social contexts and professional scenes on the other? For the purposes of this article, ‘scenes’ will be conceptually understood as a necessary prerequisite for creative milieu formations. They are considered to be informal, communicatively established social constructions and are based on the local narratives as well as the self-descriptions of entrepreneurs. Infused with a unique mixture of local...