PurposeThis paper is the result of empirical research funded by The British Academy. The overall purpose of the study is to investigate the initial barriers to internationalization experienced and perceived by small retailers based in the UK and the role of government support in addressing such obstacles.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative, multiple case research design is adopted. This involves semi‐structured in‐depth interviews with the senior manager/decision‐maker in six retail SMEs based in the UK and the analysis of company documentation and information from a range of secondary sources.FindingsThe findings from the case study data highlight internal and external barriers to internationalization relating to management: lack of vision, fear of losing control, lack of knowledge; the company: transfer of retail concept overseas, lack of resources, lack of consolidation in domestic market; and the external environment: legislation, currency, cultural differences and logistics. The findings also highlight an overall negative experience and perception of government support in assisting smaller retailers to overcome these barriers and aid expansion outside the UK.Originality/valueThe findings of this study provide important insight into the perceived and actual barriers encountered by retail SMEs. On one hand, the focus on SMEs provides fresh evidence to the retail internationalization literature, which has focused primarily on the barriers faced by large multinational retailers. On the other hand, the context of this study, yields new insight into research conducted in the field of SME internationalization, which has to date ignored smaller firms in the retail industry. The findings of this study also allow for recommendations to be made to both owner‐managers and government organizations.

Purpose -This extended Editorial outlines the genesis and theoretical interests of the Gender and Enterprise Network from which this special issue of the International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research emerged. In the call for papers, researchers were asked to employ existing gender theories to explore entrepreneurship. The theories and empirical insights presented in the five papers are summarised and compared. Key directions for future work are outlined. Design/methodology/approach -Articles in the special issue include cross-national studies, multilevel analyses drawing on qualitative and quantitative methods, longitudinal analysis and feminist research. The Editorial explores methodological challenges, including how to encourage cross-national collaboration, research the circumstances in which entrepreneurship is gender liberating and embed gender theory in research on male entrepreneurship. Findings -A comparison is made of the findings from the papers in this special issue, to draw out wider implications for our understanding of entrepreneurship as a gendered process. Originality/value -This special issue represents a significant milestone in advancing our understanding of all entrepreneurship as gendered. Its focus on gender theory (rather than on the empirical study of women's entrepreneurship) is novel and marks the theoretical direction advocated by the Gender and Enterprise Network. It is hoped that the employment of gender theory in the Editorial and articles will spark the interest, and raise the contribution, of the wider entrepreneurship research community. An agenda for the future is outlined.

PurposeAgainst a backdrop of global economic recession, high production costs and increased international competition, the performance, survival and growth of small businesses is high on the global political agenda. However, like many other nations, Ireland is lagging behind in terms of a co‐ordinated approach to the specific challenge of supporting women‐owned ventures, hence possibly reducing their opportunity to act as economic agents. Based on a review of growth‐oriented support programmes for women in business in Ireland, this short viewpoint seeks to identifiy a number of gaps in the current support system and to propose a range of possible alternative intervention strategies that the authors believe can help facilitate business growth.Design/methodology/approachUsing secondary data, a review of the current government support programmes was carried out. Further, evidence obtained through an in‐depth qualitative study of 33 women entrepreneurs in Ireland and Northern Ireland which identified a number of specific barriers inhibiting the development of these firms was used.FindingsThe analysis of current government practices revealed that whilst women are making progress in starting more businesses in Ireland, the current statistics indicate that they still tend to start small and stay small. This points towards a need to reassess and understand the issue of growth among women entrepreneurs and, in doing so, develop new mechanisms that can have real impact on growth‐oriented women‐owned firms whilst also respecting and supporting those who choose not to grow their business. The qualitative study identified a number of specific barriers, which hinder the development of their firms. These included financial, regulatory and employability challenges; a lack of management skills and confidence. Motherhood and personal goals were also found to be inhibiting factors for women entrepreneurs.Practical implicationsThe paper proposes a number of possible government and personal intervention strategies to overcome the identified barriers. These include encouraging lending within the small growth sectors, conducting a regional skills audit, reducing the administration and paperwork associated with trading and accessing support and develop customised training and up‐skilling designed to meet the specific needs of women entrepreneurs.Originality/valueThe paper argues that government agencies in Ireland must now act on the evidence provided and confront the issues affecting women entrepreneurs.

This article delivers a series of activities which help participants to examine and stimulate their capacity for creativity to support entrepreneurial problem-solving. It provides a series of tools which enable entrepreneurship educators to support their students in a review, immersion and reflection of their creative capacity using the concept of childhood play, and specifically the superhero, to stimulate their imagination. Inspired by the creative mindset often found in young children, these activities help to build creative self-efficacy, challenging participants to exercise curiosity to go beyond their current resource limitations to solve problems by immersing them within a positive childhood experience. While students explore the concept of creativity and its fundamental role for entrepreneurial problem-solving, the workshop activity helps them to embody their own "superhero" and revisit their unconstrained, imaginative 5 year old selves through the use of pictures, costumes, masks, and icons. Finally, in reflecting upon the activities and acknowledging their own personal capacity

Purpose This study aims to develop insights on how national culture, gender and field of study can influence the impact of entrepreneurship education toward the development of entrepreneurial intention. Design/methodology/approach The entrepreneurship education project gathered data from over 18,000 undergraduate student responses, spanning over 70 countries and 400 universities. The sample used in this research examined eight countries with significantly different national cultures, while a quantitative analysis of a sample of n = 5,033 responses was performed. Beyond correlation analysis, a hierarchical multiple regression model is implemented for intention along with moderation analysis. Findings The statistical analysis reveals robust correlations among several entrepreneurial concepts and national cultural indices. As expected, national culture interweaves with all entrepreneurial concepts and more significantly for students of socially oriented disciplines. Gendera and field of the study appear moderators of causal relationships between entrepreneurial constructs. Exerting a strong influence by culture, entrepreneurial identity appears the most significant explanator of intention. Overall, the emergent pattern suggests entrepreneurship is intentional, but in a socially justified and accepted manner closely related to local cultural norms and institutions. Research limitations/implications Implications pertain to research for entrepreneurial intention and to educators and educational bodies concerning their goal setting for entrepreneurial programs and appropriate scheduling of effective pedagogies. Originality/value The study exploits a large data set from eight countries (Brazil, Colombia, Germany, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Spain and USA) which permits systematic quantitative search for the influence of culture on the impact of entrepreneurship education. Cross-national studies of entrepreneurship education and the effect of national culture have been scant in literature – a research gap the study responds to. The inclusion of both developing and developed countries contributes in a novel way to a unique understanding of the influence of culture on entrepreneurial concepts through education.