Immigrant entrepreneurs in Italy : adaptation patterns and gender issues

In this work we analyse immigrant entrepreneurship in Italy using an integrated data set of Italian Business Register (ASIA) and Archives of the Chambers of Commerce for the period of time 2007-2010. The aim of the study is to provide a comprehensive picture of the phenomenon during the economic crisis in Italy, shedding light to the adaptation pattern that characterize migrant entrepreneurs in the Italian context, and paying particular attention to gender dimension.
The data system refers to about 6 million business people; 5% of them are born abroad. About 70% of foreign born entrepreneurs comes from extra UE countries and they are particularly represented among individual business. Immigrant men are overrepresented in the job field which were most affected by the economic crisis (constructions, industrial production, finance), while women are active mainly in the health care and social assistance sectors, which were less affected. The study confirms that the immigrant female entrepreneurs respond to clearly distinct market functions than their male counterpart and shed light on the adaptation process of immigrant entrepreneurs into the social and economic context of the host country.