Entrepreneurial Strategies in Southern Europe: Rural Workers in the Garment Industry of Greece

In a number of economies located on the periphery of western Europe, there has been a burgeoning of new enterprises and jobs in rural areas since the early 1970s. Industrialization in these regions of Italy, Iberia, and Greece took the form of family-owned and managed small-scale enterprises. A key feature of these rural and small-town units was their flexibility in organization and control of labor time. The great majority were dependent upon family workers, especially females, who frequently engaged simultaneously in domestic, farm, and wage-earning activities. Despite a considerable degree of operational diversity, they all possessed the ability to adapt quickly to changes in product markets. The causes and process of this development is investigated. One notable success story of garment-led growth, that of the small market town of Polikastro and its adjoining rural area of Peonia in Greek Macedonia is presented. The harnessing and control of the labor force - the single most important factor of garment production in the world.