Immigrant Entrepreneurs and Potentials for Path Creating Tourism Development in Rural Sweden

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper investigates the potential of immigrant tourism entrepreneurs to contribute to tourism development and to the goals of regional tourism policy through the creation of new paths of development. Based on qualitative interviews in the county of Gävleborg in Sweden, the paper contributes to understanding the role of immigrant entrepreneurs in the context of public tourism development efforts in a rural region characterized by primary resource based and manufacturing industries. The findings suggest that the strategies and agencies of several immigrant entrepreneurs are in line with the public regional development efforts to achieve new touristic products, growth of foreign visitor numbers and increased co-operation among tourism stakeholders. The paper also highlights the barriers faced by the immigrant entrepreneurs and regional tourism development actors in their efforts to increase professionalization and co-operation among local stakeholders. Finally, we argue that if the potential for immigrant tourism entrepreneurs to contribute with external networks and new knowledge for tourism development should be realised, public efforts to stimulate networking between tourism firms and with other business sectors need to be stable and long term.