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Family firms, hidden champions and regional development

Author

Listed:
  • Suwala Lech

    (Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany)

  • Ahrens Jan-Philipp

    (Lehrstuhl für Mittelstandsforschung und Entrepreneurship, Universität Mannheim, Schloss Ehrenhof Ost, 68161, Mannheim, Germany)

  • Basco Rodrigo

    (47767 Sheikh Saoud bin Khalid bin Khalid Al-Qassimi Chair in Family Business, American University of Sharjah, University City , 26666, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates)

Abstract

This editorial introduces the nexus between family firms, hidden champions, and regional development from an economic geography perspective. Family firms constitute the backbones of most local and regional economies, and some of them are even so-called hidden champions, which are global leaders in their market niches. At the same time, both entities are spatial sources of heterogeneity able to empower regions with difficult-to-imitate competitive and locational advantages that originate from the stickiness of their economic actors. It is mainly an empirical task to prove if this regional distinctiveness results from the structures and embeddings that family firms and hidden champions stand for (e.g., regional persistence and local rooting), and from the practices how these entities are owned, governed, managed (e.g., long-term business relations with [local] suppliers, customers, labour force, international excellence). By outlining three infant research directions on family firms and hidden champions from an economic geography perspective, this editorial frames the field, introduces and locates the contributions in this special issue therein, and calls for a spatially informed view on this rising cross-disciplinary field.

Suggested Citation

  • Suwala Lech & Ahrens Jan-Philipp & Basco Rodrigo, 2024. "Family firms, hidden champions and regional development," ZFW – Advances in Economic Geography, De Gruyter, vol. 68(1), pages 1-8.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:zfwige:v:68:y:2024:i:1:p:1-8:n:1005
    DOI: 10.1515/zfw-2024-0057
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    References listed on IDEAS

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