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1 Introduction
Though small businesses are an important part of our economy, there have been a limited number of investigations conducted with a focus on small businesses in small rural communities and the development of networks. Scarcity of resources and the entry of discount stores frequently jeopardize business survival in the small community ([6] Bhat and Fox, 1996; [34] Knock, 2002). Research on small business and entrepreneurship suggests the typical disparity in profits generated by male versus female-owned businesses is magnified by rural locations ([36] Loscocco et al. , 1991; [7] Bird and Sapp, 2004). Two largely rural Midwest states in the USA have experienced disproportional decreases in women's new business creation activity over the past decade ([22] Fairlie, 2008).
This study examines women-owned retail businesses, located in small Midwestern US communities as they transform their marketing perspective from an independent approach for competing to one of collaborating within a formal network. Networking is not a new concept; however, the study of network development is largely theoretical with limited study from the participants' perspective. Prior research on male and female business owner network interactions discovered that for women owners, shared resources was a more important factor than it was for men owners in determining whether they desired to continue their network membership ([39] Miller et al. , 2006). Why and how the linkages formed in support of sharing were not determined in this earlier study.
Understanding how small retail businesses operate and interact in developing a network organization will have implications not only for theory development, but for business continuance and ultimately small community viability. Projections for the retail industry through 2015 include rapid changes that will produce obstacles for business continuance ([45] Retailing 2015: New Frontiers, 2007). To drive efficiency, targeted collaborations are a strategy suggested. Sharing of details and processes is said to provide value that will increase in importance as the retail industry addresses numerous changes.
We define small businesses in this study as having fewer than 20 employees, and generating less than $1M in annual sales. [19] Dubini and Aldrich's (1991, p. 305) define networks as "patterned relationships between individuals, groups, and organizations." Networking in the context of small firms has been described by [13] Carson et al. (1995, p....