Effects of Antecedents of Entrepreneurship on Performance of Small and Medium Entreprises in Fitness Sector in Nairobi County

Abstract

Entrepreneurs hold a critical role in the economic growth of any nation because they maximize the use of the factors of production for the benefit of society, create jobs, foster innovation, raise living standards, and develop underdeveloped areas. Matching entrepreneurship to performance strategy has long been a cornerstone of entrepreneurship research. The general objective of this study was to establish antecidents of entrepreneuship and their effects on performance of small and medium enterprises (SME) in fitness sector in Nairobi County. In relation to the above general objective, the specific objectives included the following: To find out the relationship between entrepreneurship training and performance of SMEs in the fitness sector in Nairobi County, Kenya, to determine the relationship between networks and performance of SMEs in the fitness industry in Nairobi County, Kenya, to assess the connection between technology adoption and overall performance of SMEs in the fitness sector in Nairobi County, Kenya and to assess whether financial access affects the performance of SMEs in the fitness sector in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study informs policy formulation and decision making to steer the SMEs in the fitness sector into profitability and boost efforts in growing the sector to sustainability in employment and income generation as well as achieving vision 2030 as a driver of the economy especially in helping the government meet universal health care which is one of the big four agenda. The variables considered in this paper are entrepreneurial training conceptualized as an independent variable and anchored on human capital theory, technological adoption anchored on the diffusion of innovation theory, networking anchored on social networking theory and performance as the dependent variable. The research adopted a descriptive research. In the current study, the researcher’s population of focus was the fitness SMEs that are formally registered by Nairobi City County licensing office and operating in Nairobi County. This study considered all 119 small and medium fitness establishments as a sample for this study. It was a census survey. The study administered survey questionnaires to owners or managers of fitness companies who had been in service for approximately three years or more. The findings were presented in figures and tables. Inferential statistics was used to determine the relationships among variables. The analysis showed that access to financial services has the strongest positive impact on company performance in addition; Networking is positively related to company performance. Entrepreneurial training and technology adoption showed a strong relationship with firm performance. The results imply that all the variables; entrepreneurial training, networking, technology adoption and financial access are significant in explaining performance of gyms/health clubs in Nairobi. The study recommends that firms should seek after networks to share ideas, relevant knowledge, skills and unique resources to succeed in a competing environment. These networks provide a platform through which gyms/health clubs should harness what they don’t possess to better their operations.