Shifting landscapes of immigrant entrepreneurship

Although immigrant entrepreneurship still comprises small businesses confined to lower segments of markets, today immigrant entrepreneurs are also visible in the high-value activities that characterise advanced urban economies. The potential of self-employment to open up avenues of upward social mobility has also increased over time. This qualitative shift from low-value to high-value added business has emphasised the potential significance of immigrant entrepreneurs for the national and, in particular, local economies in settlement countries. Immigrant entrepreneurship can be characterised by a mixed embeddedness approach, which includes interaction between the personal resources of migrants, the resources of migrant communities (such as access to financial support, consumers, suppliers and advice) and the opportunities presented by the host country with respect to labour market structures and regulation, government incentives and public opinion. Among other factors that contribute to shape opportunities for immigrant entrepreneurship in a country are the specific policies implemented to promote it.