Understanding entrepreneurial opportunities through metaphors: a narrative approach to theorizing family entrepreneurship

The concept of opportunity is central to entrepreneurship theory. This article contributes to theorizing family entrepreneurship across generations by examining how entrepreneurial opportunities are constructed, communicated, and acted upon at the intersection between family and business. Drawing on the experiences of four families in different business sectors in Honduras, the study adopts a narrative perspective and argues that metaphors of entrepreneurial opportunity can enrich our understanding of family entrepreneurship. Findings also suggest that metaphors play a role in developing entrepreneurial legacy. This study of metaphors of opportunity, and how they might entail entrepreneurial legacy, opens up new avenues for theorizing intergenerational family entrepreneurship. In examining the metaphors referring to entrepreneurial practices developed and repeated in the family, this study contributes to understanding family entrepreneurship as a social and discursive process where meanings and values are communicated and maintained in everyday interactions.

Automated summary

This article contributes to theorizing family entrepreneurship by analyzing how entrepreneurial opportunities are constructed, communicated, and acted upon in different generations. By examining metaphors of entrepreneurial opportunity in family entrepreneurship, it opens up new avenues for understanding intergenerational family businesses. Additionally, the study highlights the role of metaphors in developing entrepreneurial legacies and emphasizes the importance of social and discursive processes in family entrepreneurship.