Migrant Entrepreneurship, Prejudice and Survival: Lessons of Extraordinary Grit and Resourcefulness

Migrants are important to entrepreneurship in the Global North. Migrants are behind one in seven of all companies in the UK, one-fifth of those engaged in entrepreneurial activity in Germany were born abroad, and 45 per cent of the largest 500 companies in the USA were founded either by migrants or by their children. However, migrants often report that they face greater problems than non-migrants when they embark on their entrepreneurial ventures. In this chapter, we make use of case studies to highlight some of the main problems that migrant entrepreneurs face when they come from the Global South and try to establish ventures in the Global North. In particular, we show why and how migrant entrepreneurs often make use of informal resources in creative ways to navigate these obstacles before they engage with formal institutions, and we suggest policy solutions to aid such migrant entrepreneurship.