Entrepreneurial Success: Key Challenges Faced by Malaysian Women Entrepreneurs in the Aged Care Industry

Abstract

Women entrepreneurship is on the rise in Malaysia due to government support. However, financial, sociocultural, environmental, and individual factors handicap women’s entrepreneurial success in Malaysia. Even though women’s personality attributes such as tenderness, empathy, patience, and care fit with the need of the aged care industry, their involvement in this industry is minimal when compared to other businesses. The entry of Malaysian women as an aging care center operator may help the Malaysian government overcome the looming challenge of the aging population. This study investigates the challenges women entrepreneurs face in achieving entrepreneurial success in the aged care industry. Ten women entrepreneurs who were running aged care centers in Malaysia were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews were utilized to gather data, and Saldaña (2018) structured inductive data analysis methodology was used to analyze the data. A success model for women entrepreneurs in the service industry is proposed by identifying women entrepreneurs’ critical challenges in the aged care industry. Despite many challenges, the centers are still sustainable and depict women entrepreneurs’ potential to excel in this industry. This carries implications for the industry, policymakers, investors, and society. The present study proposes a business model for women entrepreneurs, a novel contribution to the mainstream literature.