Handicraft Industry Entrepreneurial Ecosystem (HIEE): An Empirical Evidence of Malaysian Handicraft Micro and Small Industry Entrepreneurs

Abstract

Handicraft industries continue to play an important role in the economies of all Asian countries including Malaysia. They not only constitute small business activities in themselves but are also often the only available means to provide additional employment and raise the level of living for rural populations. Despite the government's several institutional and policy support for enhancing the capacity of micro and small-scale enterprises, the results have fallen short of expectations. In view of the growing world market for products of traditional Asian handicraft industries, having a relevant entrepreneurial ecosystem model specific to handicraft micro and small industries in Malaysia is imperative. Thus, this study attempts to: (1) identify the components of entrepreneurial ecosystem of handicraft micro and small industries in Malaysia; (2) determine the relationship between components of entrepreneurial ecosystem and business performance. The SEM-PLS approach has been employed as a statistical method to analyze the research model. Data were collected from 50 handicraft micro and small entrepreneurs using personally administered questionnaire surveys. The findings indicate that only talent was found to have a significant relationship with business performance. This study is significant to the investors, the ministry, the government, academics and even business owners in providing a comprehensive model in understanding the handicraft industry entrepreneurial processes through which the ecosystems emerge, change, and influence the activities of the entrepreneurs.