Entrepreneurial processes in an emergent resource industry: Community embeddedness in Maine's Sea urchin industry

Abstract

The impact of economic changes on communities is not a new subject for rural sociology. However, a growing literature examines the impact of communal relations on economic action and organization. This paper contributes to this literature with an examination of entrepreneurship in an emergent resource industry - the northwest Atlantic sea urchin industry. Based on fieldwork conducted from July 1996 to April 1998, the analysis finds two different types of entrepreneurs emerge: those embedded in local fishing communities and those from outside those communities. Although they share similar challenges, entrepreneurs' differing relationships with the local community lead to diverse strategies, which have important implications for the development of new industries. Copyright © 2005 by the Rural Sociological Society.