In academia as well as in policy circles, entrepreneurial activities are placed at the focal point for regional development. However, geographical factors such as urbanization and peripherality are often neglected in this strand of research despite the increasing need for place-specific policies. The aim of this paper is therefore to analyse how start-up rates vary across municipalities in Sweden 2002-2012 by focussing on spatial differences of human capital, social capital, entrepreneurial culture and industrial specialization. Our multilevel models show how the degree of rurality and peripherality, respectively, moderates the role of different regional resources. The paper concludes by suggesting the formulation of separate policies considering urban, rural and more peripheral regions.

Industry experience and home advantage can have a varying influence on entrepreneurial competitiveness, depending on the regional context. We use matched employer-employee data from Statistics Sweden to analyse new firm formation in rural, urban and metropolitan regions. The results suggest that industry experience has a positive effect on firm survival, while firm growth is more influenced by home advantage. Interestingly, a positive home advantage only exists in rural regions, where native entrepreneurs create significantly more jobs than non-locals.

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