Intuitive perception and the competitive advantage of small family businesses: an exploratory study

Abstract

We assess the closeness of perceptions between managers and customers of two small family-owned businesses ("FBs") and two larger non-FBs in Sardinia, Italy, in exploring how local retail shops may compete against international superstores. While the decline of small, High Street businesses has been widely reported, we present a more nuanced perspective of their competitiveness by suggesting how these typically family-run businesses may hold a competitive advantage over larger non-FBs based on their welldeveloped "perceptive concordance" with customers. Our findings have scholarly and managerial implications in the way that both FBs and non-FBs may gain competitive advantage by securing their customers' continuing support.