Female consumer entrepreneurship in Asia: capabilities for micro-entrepreneurial success and the role of coaching and training

Purpose: The direct selling model adopted in the beauty and cosmetics industry puts female consumer entrepreneurs at the heart of the business model. A neglected phenomenon in female entrepreneurship, the study focuses on female sales agents’ capabilities that are linked to sales performance and examines which capabilities might be shaped and enhanced through coaching and training in an emerging economy context.

Design/methodology/approach: Survey data were generated from a sample of 249 female sales agents, who agreed to participate in a coaching and training program run by a focal firm. Data were collected in two phases to investigate (i) the capabilities linked to sales performance pre-intervention and (ii) the impact of coaching and training on the relationships between the capabilities and sales performance post-intervention. The time-lag data were analysed using Least Squared Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM).

Findings: For female sales agents, self-efficacy and sales experience have a significant positive effect on adaptive sales performance both before and after the coaching and training intervention. In contrast, intellectual capital and self-motivation had a non-significant relationship with sales performance before the intervention. However, after the intervention, the relationship between these variables became positive and significant.

Originality: The study demonstrates the effects of pre- and post-coaching and training on female consumer entrepreneurs’ capabilities and the links to sales performance. These findings add critical empirical knowledge on how female consumer entrepreneurship may be developed and the role of entrepreneurship for female empowerment in the Asian context. Collectively, the findings bring to the fore the female sphere in consumer entrepreneurship research in emerging economies.