Build an iconic shopping experience that your customers love-and a work environment that your employees love being a part of-using this blueprint from Trader Joe's visionary founder, Joe Coulombe. Infuse your organization with a distinct personality and culture that draws customers in a way that simply competing on price cannot. Joe Coulombe founded what would become Trader Joe's in the late 1960s and helped shape it into the beloved, quirky food chain it is today. Realizing early on that he could not compete and win by playing the same game his bigger competitors were playing, he decided to build a store for educated people of somewhat modest means. He brought in unusual products from around the world and promoted them in the Fearless Flyer, providing customers with background on how they were sourced and their nutritional value. He also gave the stores a tiki theme to reinforce the exotic trader ship concept with employees wearing Hawaiian shirts. In this way, Joe laid down a blueprint for other business owners to follow to build their own unique shopping experience that customers love, and a work environment that employees love being a part of. In Becoming Trader Joe, Joe shares the lessons he learned by challenging the status quo and rethinking the way a business operates. He shows readers of all types: How moving from a pure analytical approach to a more creative, problem-solving approach can drive innovation. How finding an affluent niche of passionate customers can be a better strategy than competing on price and volume. How questioning all aspects of the way you do business leads to powerful results. How to build a business around your values and identity.

Many developed countries are facing a demographic change with an increasing share of older individuals, yet little is known about how older workers will impact regional and national economies in terms of labor market dynamics. One possible outcome of this new demographic structure is that more individuals will become entrepreneurs at an older age. This Handbook contributes to the important and emerging field of entrepreneurship among this group and focuses on the behavioral perspectives of this phenomenon; on innovation, dynamics and performance; and the ways entrepreneurship among the elderly looks within different countries. Researchers interested in the field of entrepreneurship among older workers and policy makers dealing with the effects of changing demographic settings within countries or regions will turn to this work to gain a better understanding of entrepreneurship and aging. Contributors include: Z. Acs, M. Amaral, A.E. Brouwer, M. Cucculelli, M. Damman, H. Delfmann, M. Dragusin, R. Fonseca, M. Fritsch, M.M. Gielnik, J. Hessels, C. Holmquist, M. Klinthall, B. Leick, R. Mariana, A. Maritz, C. Matos, H. Mayer, M. Mensmann, G. Micucci, S.C. Parker, A. Sorgner, R. Sternberg, E. Sundin, P. van der Zwan, H. Van Solinge, D. Welsh, M. Wyrwich, H. Zacher, T. Zhang

This ground-breaking book exposes the myths behind startup success, illuminates the real forces at work and shows how they can be harnessed in your favour. The world isn't a level playing field. Meritocracy is a myth. And if you look at those at the top, you realise that behind every success story is an Unfair Advantage. But that doesn't just mean your parents' wealth or who you know. An Unfair Advantage is any element that gives you an edge over your competition. And we all have one. Drawing on over two decades of hands-on experience, including as the first Marketing Director of Just Eat (a startup now worth over GBP5 billion), the authors show how to identify your own unfair advantages and apply them to any project. Hard work and grit aren't enough, so they explore the importance of money, intelligence, insight, location, education, expertise, status and luck in the journey to success. From Snapchat to Spanx, Oprah to Elon Musk, unfair advantages have shaped the journeys of some of the most successful brands in the world. This book helps you too find the external circumstances and internal strengths to succeed in the world of business and beyond.

Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world's leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas. Fully revised and updated, this Advanced Introduction provides a comprehensive understanding of entrepreneurial finance of new and growing ventures. With a unique research-based focus, Hans Landstroem synthesizes contemporary knowledge and presents diverse theoretical approaches to explain financial decision-making in entrepreneurial ventures. New features include: An updated synthesis of knowledge on entrepreneurial finance, which highlights accumulated knowledge as well as new contributions in entrepreneurial finance research Emphasis on entrepreneurial finance from the perspective of both entrepreneurs as well as capital providers An elaboration of financial issues not only in high-tech and high growth ventures, but also in the financing of more 'everyday' ventures A consideration of the ways the financial landscape has changed, featuring analysis of the FinTech revolution, crowdfunding and initial coin offerings (ICOs). This second edition will serve as an excellent up-to-date resource for advanced students and scholars in entrepreneurship, innovation, finance, and business. Policy-makers interested in financial issues in young and growing ventures will also find this Advanced Introduction a useful tool for exploring financial decision-making from an entrepreneur's perspective.

A fundamental process for a company to achieve stable growth levels over time in a highly competitive economy is the ability to improve, adapt, and overcome a variety of challenges, whether they be internally or externally based. Therefore, being capable of understanding how any operational changes or improvements impact consumers must likewise be taken into consideration. Entrepreneurial Innovation for Securing Long-Term Growth in a Short-Term Economy is a collection of innovative research on the methods and applications of corporate decision making on the overall success of a company in the long term. While highlighting topics including organizational values, trust management, and social entrepreneurship, this book is ideally designed for entrepreneurs, executives, business consultants, researchers, industry professionals, and students who want to improve their understanding of the strategic role of entrepreneurial innovation at different levels defined by globalized markets inserted into the information and knowledge society.

One of the most challenging tasks in the research design process is choosing the most appropriate data collection and analysis technique. This Handbook provides a detailed introduction to five qualitative data collection and analysis techniques pertinent to exploring entrepreneurial phenomena. Techniques for collecting and analyzing data are rarely addressed in detail in published articles. In addition, the constant development of new tools and refinement of existing ones has meant that researchers often face a confusing range from which to choose. The experienced and expert group of contributors to this book provide detailed, practical accounts of how to conduct research employing focus groups, critical incident technique, repertory grids, metaphors, the constant comparative method and grounded theory. This Handbook will become the starting point for any research project. Scholars new to entrepreneurship and doctoral students as well as established academics keen to extend their research scope will find this book an invaluable and timely resource. Contributors: A.R. Anderson, C. Bjursell, A. Bollingtoft, E. Chell, E. Diaz de Leon, C. Dima, S. Drakopoulou Dodd, P. Guild, A. Hagedorn, R.T. Harrison, F.M. Hill, S.L. Jack, R.G. Klapper, A. de Koning, C.M. Leitch, E. McKeever, S. Moult, H. Neergaard, R. Newby, R. Smith, S.M. Smith, G. Soutar, J. Watson

In light of growing discourse on 'frugal innovation', this book offers novel approaches to innovation based on extensive empirical research. The study complements a decade of scholarly attention on frugal innovation by taking a research-based approach to innovation in resource-scarce and complex institutional contexts. The findings suggest that concepts such as frugal, reverse, jugaad, social, grassroots and inclusive innovation in fact represent heterogeneous assemblies of innovation for social, environmental and economic value. The conceptual framework invites attention to more plural sources and elements in the study of models of innovation to inspire further research in the fields of strategy, innovation, entrepreneurship, economic sociology and development studies. The design framework offers models, metrics and competencies for practitioners and policymakers to identify, evaluate and design frugal innovations. The comprehensive view of frugal innovation demonstrates how firms can implement globally competitive strategies by pursuing innovation for humanity to improve lives for everyone, everywhere.

Freelance consulting, coaching, IT contracting and other self-employed professional roles are fast becoming the preferred way to find fulfilling work, generate a great income, and futureproof careers, whilst giving all the benefits and freedoms of being your own boss – but few know how to make it really work.

The Freelance Consultant is the comprehensive guide into turning your expertise into a viable, and valuable, business.

With independent consultant Richard Newton, you will discover a wealth of insider knowledge as well as a network of other successful advisors willing to share their stories. The Freelance Consultant will explain how to:

• Setup, run and thrive in your freelance, consultant or coaching business.
• Acquire those vital first paying clients.
• Know what it takes to become a successful, differentiated and valuable advisor.
• Build your business, define your services and set your prices.
• Understand your customers and identify, manage, and retain key clients.
• Keep developing and continually improving your skills an growing your business.

Entrepreneurship is the engine of economic development, which in turn impacts the challenges facing future entrepreneurs. Understanding the development of a vivid entrepreneurial society requires attention to several interacting factors, as well as expected transversal policies provided by ministries and administrations as a whole. This timely book explores institutional, behavioral and policy issues of primary importance to seizing the entrepreneurial society. Exploring the Entrepreneurial Society collects original work from renowned scholars involved in entrepreneurship research, with theoretical and empirical contributions anchored in economics, management and sociology. The chapters are structured in five distinct parts: entrepreneurship in relation to formal and informal institutions; entrepreneurial choice, orientation and success; entrepreneurial behaviors; entrepreneurial finance, growth and economic crises; and entrepreneurship, social dimensions and outcomes. By examining themes at the forefront of research interest, this book will appeal to scholars, as well as MA and PhD students, in entrepreneurship, business administration and economics. Policy makers will also be able to apply the results in a more practical context. Contributors include: E. Akola, S. Allegrezza, L. Ben Aoun-Peltier, A. Aragon Sanchez, J.H. Block, D. Boegenhold, J. Bonnet, D. Carre, G. de Wit, M. Dejardin, A. Dubrocard, N. Esteban-Lloret, F. Facchini, U. Fachinger, A. Frankus, D. Garcia Perez de Lema, P. Giordani, G. Maldonado-Guzman, J. Heinonen, G. Hernandez-Canovas, A. Jacquemin, F. Janssen, S. Larue, N. Le Pape, N. Levratto, X. Li, M. del C. Martinez Serna, H. Okamuro, E. Papaoikonomou, M.C. Ramon-Llorens, A. Risselada, U. Rizzo, A. Rubio Banon, V. Schutjens, P. Segarra, Subandono, M. Teruel Carrizosa, L. Tessier, A. van Stel, I. Verheul, N. Vi Dung, Ph, S.G. Walter