Abstract

The purpose of the current study is to explore the personal characteristics of hospitality and tourism industry entrepreneurs and their contribution to the new firm’s success. This study used a mixed-method approach to test our model that utilized online survey questionnaires, as well as in-depth interviews. After developing a comprehensive model of the personal characteristics of the entrepreneur, we developed an online questionnaire used to collect data to test the model. Moreover, we also used the survey to select participants for further in-depth interviews. There were sixteen qualified respondents who completed the questionnaire. Three of those were selected and contacted, and they agreed to participate in an interview. We developed a semi-structured interview guide and tested our model with new hospitality and tourism industry business owners (specifically, three hotel businesses) located in Pattaya, Chiang Mai, and Sukhothai, Thailand. Thus, along with the quantitative data gathered from the survey results, our research employs a qualitative case study approach and utilizes the semi-structured interview guide to obtain data associated with the entrepreneur’s personal characteristics and their new firm’s performance. The data supported the model and indicated that the entrepreneur’s personal characteristics contributed to instigating the firm’s success.