ABSTRACT

Mainstreaming gender into research on organizational performance is an emerging area of research. Bird and Sapp (2004) identified a gender gap in small business success favoring men in urban and rural comparisons. In an earlier study Kalleberg and Leicht (1991) analyzed indicators of survival and success of small businesses including food and beverage industries in the US and noted that the processes are similar for businesses headed by women and men, however, they detected preliminary indications that ‘Different market approaches may pay off differentially for women and men’.3 The authors considered the flexibility imparted by a generalist orientation to product portfolio and an emphasis on quality as factors that are ‘more salient to the survival chances of businesses headed by women’.4