Gender and entrepreneurship revisited from a community perspective: experiences in a new immigrant gateway and beyond

Abstract

Women-owned enterprises have boomed significantly during the past several decades. The purpose of this study is to theorize and empirically delineate the connections between female entrepreneurship and community development through the lens of entrepreneurship. Our results indicate that, from the initial creation of these businesses, to their daily operations and resource mobilization through social networks, women entrepreneurs are closely connected to local communities through their business activities. At the same time, as engagement and payback to local communities are fundamental to their professional goals and operation strategies, female entrepreneurship activities have significantly contributed to local communities in a wide range of ways. The dialectical connections between women business owners and their communities have significant potential to be incorporated into community development policies and practices.