Date of Conferral

2019

Degree

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.)

School

Management

Advisor

Karin Mae

Abstract

Small business owners encounter various difficulties in funding businesses. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies that some small business owners used to acquire capital to sustain their businesses longer than the first 5 years of operation. The resource-based theory was the conceptual framework for this study. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with a sample of 3 owners of small businesses in a metropolitan area in the southeastern United States and review of company profit statements. Five themes emerged from data triangulation and analyses: start-up capital access, private lender networking, motivation, self-realization, and external perceptions. The implications of this study for positive social change include the potential to affect how owners of small businesses acquire capital resources. Results from this study could help inform owners of small businesses about strategies to acquire sustainable capital and mitigate the causes of some business failures.

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