The marketing/entrepreneurship interface: a report on the “Charleston Summit”

Purpose – A group of researchers met in Charleston, South Carolina, USA to discuss the past and future of the marketing/entrepreneurship interface. The purpose of this paper is to summarize main discussions from the three‐day summit. Design/methodology/approach – Roughly 16 hours of presentations and discussions were digitally recorded. The lead author reviewed the recordings making copious notes, which were organized into 17 themes for further analysis. Future research directions based on discussion around the most poignant themes are reported. Findings – The paper presents nine categories of discussions around the interface including: the four research perspectives; “the future is in the past;” marketing; entrepreneurship; small business marketing; entrepreneurial marketing; practical significance; context of research; and modeling. Research limitations/implications – Throughout the nine sections, this paper highlights considerations for future research. It suggests that scholars conducting research at the interface consider the theoretical perspective of their research to improve collective theory building and better positioning. It suggests that scholars also consider the firm and industry context of their empirical research. Finally, it suggests a number of research questions. Practical implications – The paper suggests that during the research design phase, scholars make efforts to consider the practical significance that will result from their research. In particular, they should consider that research in start‐ups (all businesses start somewhere) and small businesses (the vast majority of all enterprises) can have widespread impacts. Originality/value – This paper provides a unique approach to conceptually organizing marketing/entrepreneurship interface research and provides an abundant source of ideas for future research.