“Stay small” syndrome in the rise and stall lifecycle of industrial clusters: evidence from Sapporo Valley cluster

Futoshi Akiba and Jin-ichiro Yamada

Chapter 2 in Clusters in Times of Uncertainty, 2024, pp 29-48 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter examines IT entrepreneurs and clusters in Sapporo, pivotal in Japan’s PC industry development during the 1970s and 1980s. It spotlights theoretical gaps overlooked by high-growth entrepreneurial ecosystem theory using historical examples. Through 27 years of observations, internal documents, published materials, and interviews, it reveals the lifecycle of the Sapporo IT cluster, including a stagnation period. The study identifies that the collapse of a major financial institution significantly impacted risk-taking behaviors in the cluster. The entrepreneurs’ resistance to management and growth avoidance is noted. The chapter suggests that self-sustainable and high-growth entrepreneurial ecosystems coexist within the IT cluster. Furthermore, the self-sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem serves as the underlying bedrock of the high-growth ecosystem, contributing to the cluster’s sustainability, but encompassing a different logic than the high-growth orientation.

Keywords: Economics and Finance; Innovations and Technology; Urban and Regional Studies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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