Success factors behind women-led enterprises: The case of ‘Hela Bojun Hala’ food outlet

Abstract

As a nation that prioritises gender-inclusiveness, Sri Lankan government authorities introduced a series of programmes. Of those, ‘Hela Bojun Hala’, women-led authentic local food outlets, are notable womenempowerment projects. However, the alarming rate of failed women entrepreneurs in developing countries calls for redesigning a successful model for venture creation. Hence, this paper identifies the factors that contributed to the success of women entrepreneurs at ‘Hela Bojun Hala’. This qualitative research uses a case study approach. Convenience sampling is used to select 20 women entrepreneurs in an outlet. Thematic analysis is used to analyse the data. The study found that there was a set of push factors which empower women entrepreneurs. Utilization of inherent capacity of women, prioritizing the need for economic empowerment, enhancement of skills through training and development, innovative produce, and the exercise of risk taking made this innovative approach a success.
Keywords: Women entrepreneurs, women-led enterprises, success factors, food outlet, Sri Lanka