Daskalopoulou, Athanasia and Skandalis, Alexandros (2019) Consumption Field Driven Entrepreneurship (CFDE) : How does membership in the indie music field shape individuals’ entrepreneurial journey. European Journal of Marketing, 53 (1). pp. 63-82. ISSN 0309-0566
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Abstract
Purpose: This study aims to explore how membership (initially as a consumer) in a given field shapes individuals’ entrepreneurial journey. Design/methodology: Our research context is the cultural and creative industries and, in particular, the independent (indie) music field in which we conducted unstructured interviews with nascent and established cultural entrepreneurs. Findings: We introduce and justify our theoretical framework of Consumption Field Driven Entrepreneurship (CFDE) that captures the tripartite process via which our informants make the transition from indie music consumers to entrepreneurs by developing field-specific illusio, enacting entrepreneurial habitus, and acquiring legitimacy via symbolic capital accumulation within the indie music field. We further illustrate how these entrepreneurs adopt the paradoxical logics, aesthetics and ethos of the indie music field by moving in-between its authentic and commercial discourses to orchestrate their entrepreneurial journey. Research limitations/implications: Our study holds several theoretical implications for entrepreneurship-oriented research. First of all, we highlight the importance of non-financial resources (i.e., cultural and social capital) in individuals' entrepreneurial journey. Secondly, our study illustrates the importance of consumption activities in the process of gaining entrepreneurial legitimation within a specific field. Finally, our study contributes to consumption-driven entrepreneurship research by offering a detailed description of individuals' consumption-driven entrepreneurial journey. Practical implications: Our study provides some initial practical implications for entrepreneurs within the cultural and creative industries. We illustrate how membership in a field (initially as a consumer) might turn into a source of skills, competences and community for entrepreneurs by mobilising and converting different forms of non-material and material field-specific capital. In order to acquire entrepreneurial legitimation, nascent entrepreneurs should gain symbolic capital through the approval, recognition and credit from members of the indie music field. Also, entrepreneurs can acquire symbolic capital and gain entrepreneurial legitimation by either ‘fitting in’ or ‘standing out’ from the existing logics of the field. Originality/value: Our study contributes to the growing body of literature that examines entrepreneurship fuelled by consumption practices and passions with our theoretical framework of Consumption Field Driven Entrepreneurship (CFDE) which outlines the transition from indie music consumers to indie music entrepreneurs.