God in the marketplace: Pentecostalism and marketing ritualization among Black Africans in the UK

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to examine market-mediated transformative capacities of Black African Pentecostalism. It does this by exploring the interface between religion, culture and identity to generate a fresh interpretation of how marketing is ritualized among UK’s Black Africans on the platform of Pentecostalism. Design/methodology/approach Methodology is based on in-depth interviews with respondents drawn from the African Pentecostal movements in London, UK. This paper shows how adherents’ responsiveness to Pentecostal dogmas generated market advantages. Findings The paper reveals the interconnectedness of religion, faith and culture which, in turn, coalesced into a dense network that defines the reproduction, organization and approach to entrepreneurial marketing. Originality/value Pentecostal practices unveil the marketing notion of “Pentepreneurship”, which combines both spiritual and enterprise activities to formulate a fused space of engagement straddling the sacred and the secular. This fusion points to a unique platform of entrepreneurial marketing that bestrides ethno-cultural, religious and economic identities.

Recent developments in entrepreneurial marketing: systematic literature review, thematic analysis and research agenda

“…Related to the environmental conditions subtheme, authors generally agree that entrepreneurial marketing takes place in the context of constantly changing markets. Change can be triggered by various factors, including technological developments, globalization (Deacon and Harris, 2011), demographic changes (Matsuno and Kohlbacher, 2020), structural influences on social or political levels (Ojo and Nwankwo, 2020; Peterson and Crittenden, 2020), environmental disasters and climate change (Morrish and Jones, 2020). Polas and Raju (2021) also note how the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the use of technology for marketing decisions.…”

Black African perceptions of entrepreneurial outcomes in the UK

“…There seems to be a prestige mileage attached to business ownership amongst the African minority groups in the UK. This is understandable given the background of the groups’ experiences of ethnic penalties in the UK’s labour market (Nwankwo, 2005; Ojo and Nwankwo, 2020).…”

Toward understanding the dynamics of the relationship between religion, entrepreneurship and social change: Empirical findings from technology-savvy African immigrants in UK

“…The nexus between religion and African immigrant entrepreneurship in Great Britain is an established theme in the academic literature (e.g., Nwankwo et al, 2012;Ojo and Nwankwo, 2020). Several studies on African immigrant entrepreneurship highlighted the pervasiveness of religiosity and religious communities (e.g., Nwankwo et al, 2012;Nwankwo and Gbadamosi, 2013;Ojo, 2017).…”

“…Immigrants' testimony outlines not only the significance of religious practice in their home society, but also the importance of religion as a stabilizing cadre in the host country (Ojo, 2019). However, although the link between religion and African migrant entrepreneurship is well documented (Nwankwo and Gbadamosi, 2013;Nwankwo et al, 2012;Ojo and Nwankwo, 2020), we still lack a clear understanding of how individual religious profile and manifestations influence entrepreneurial decisions and actions.…”