Living with the Paradox: Growth and Regeneration within Entrepreneurial Ecosystems - Navigating Tension between Regenerative Principles and Competitiveness

Abstract

Regenerative entrepreneurship aims to generate net-positive contributions to the socio-ecological systems on which firms depend, yet it must operate within entrepreneurial ecosystems designed to reward growth, scalability, and short-term financial performance. This study examines how Swedish regenerative entrepreneurial firms navigate the resulting tensions between regenerative principles and competitiveness. Taking entrepreneurial ecosystem theory as its primary analytical lens, and drawing on institutional logics, the growth paradox, and scaling theory, the study analyzes 25 semi-structured interviews with entrepreneurs, intermediaries, domain experts, and established firms. The findings reveal a structurally misaligned ecosystem in which regenerative value remains difficult to recognize and reward. Firms experience the growth paradox along both exogenous and endogenous dimensions, and navigate it through four strategies: scaling out, scaling deep, collaboration, and resilience framing. Rather than resolving these tensions, firms act as institutional entrepreneurs that gradually expand what the ecosystem recognizes as legitimate entrepreneurship.