The integration process of immigrants owning a business : The research of SMEs in Sweden

Abstract: Background – A number of immigrants has increased extremely in many European countries in the recent years, and Sweden is one of them. Almost a fifth part of Swedish inhabitants has an immigrant background. In addition, the businesses operated by immigrants are a constantly increasing fact in the country. Virtually every immigrant faces an integration process when moving to a new country. Moreover, appropriate integration might be required from immigrants in order to have a successful business. A significant sequence of research over the past years has been conducted in what regards the characteristics of businesses owned by immigrants, particularly, those located in Sweden. However, there is still a lack of research regarding those immigrants’ integration and its relationship to their businesses. Purpose – The purpose of our thesis is to examine and understand how the integration of the immigrants owning an enterprise in Sweden affects the business. The researchers aim at adding to the existing studies by possibly discovering a process which relates to the integration of the immigrants and the businesses they own. Method – A narrative inquiry study conducted through in-depth interviews with nine immigrants owning a business was performed to gain empirical evidence on topic of integration process of immigrants owning a business in Sweden. The obtained data was analyzed with existing literature on immigrant integration and business functioning. Conclusion – The thesis concluded that immigrants’ integration has a direct link with business they own. It was discovered that immigrants have to integrate properly in order to run their business and avoid additional costs. The two main dimensions of integration were identified: cultural and legal system learning. Both play a crucial role and lead to a prosperous business development if achieved.