The challenges and consequences of Covid-19 epidemic on entrepreneurship: A qualitative study on entrepreneurs

Abstract

Unprecedentedly, the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) outbreak causes businesses with many unforeseen challenges due to its rapid spreading and global reach. Due to the global magnitude and changing impact of the Covid-19 crisis, there is an urgent need to consider its effects on entrepreneurship. Therefore, more and more businesses are now looking to improve their continuity plan to better prepare for the impact of COVID-19. Thus, the present study aims to investigate the effect and consequences of COVID-19 in entrepreneurial firms. With the purposive sampling technique's aid, data were garnered from entrepreneurs and small- business owners in the Vavuniya district with in-depth interviews. The majority of the informants interviewed disclosed that the COVID-19 devastated firms’ productivity, demand, customers' loss, and, consequently, performance. Moreover, it has been found that the COVID 19 epidemic has given an open-door for entrepreneurs to conduct their business operations online.