Exploring small family‐owned firms’ competitive ability

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to highlight points of differentiation for small family businesses, relative to larger “big box” retailers, which may provide marketing‐oriented competitive advantages. Design/methodology/approach From a conceptual perspective, the authors illustrate how small family‐owned businesses may be able to successfully compete against big box retailers by differentiation in three key areas. Findings The authors conclude that small family businesses may be able to successfully differentiate themselves from the larger big box retailers by: establishing a relationship with customers based on trust; competing on value (not price); and focusing the business on serving a specialized segment of the market. Practical implications The paper offers theory‐based advice for practitioners, as well as thoughts on future directions for academic research. Originality/value Much of the research that has been done on family‐owned businesses has focused on the characteristics of the family operating the firm, and how they interact with one another while running the business. Less attention has been given to the exploration of points of differentiation for small family retailers, relative to big box retailers, and how these areas may provide marketing‐oriented advantages. Thus, this work offers substantial benefit for practitioners and the authors’ suggestions for future research will benefit academics.