Title: 1Heritage as enterprise: Cultural entrepreneurship and the transformation of folk artists' livelihoods in
Authors: Vietnam's creative economy
Volume: 10
Issue: 7
Pages: 64-80
Publication Date: 2026/07/28
Abstract:
The creative economy has increasingly highlighted the potential of cultural heritage as a strategic resource for innovation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable development. However, traditional cultural practitioners, particularly folk artists in music sector in developing economies, continue to face challenges in transforming cultural resources into sustainable livelihoods. This study examines how cultural entrepreneurship contributes to the sustainable livelihoods of Vietnamese folk artists by developing and empirically testing an integrated model based on Cultural Entrepreneurship Theory and Sustainable Livelihood Theory. Using survey data collected from 165 folk artists in Vietnam, this study applies Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to investigate the relationships among cultural capital, entrepreneurial orientation, market access, digital cultural platforms, creative cultural production, and sustainable livelihood. The findings reveal that cultural capital, entrepreneurial orientation, market access, and digital cultural platforms positively influence creative cultural production. Among these factors, cultural capital demonstrates the strongest effect on creative cultural production, emphasizing the importance of accumulated cultural knowledge, traditional skills, and artistic identity in generating culturally meaningful outputs. Furthermore, creative cultural production significantly enhances sustainable livelihood, indicating that the transformation of cultural resources into innovative cultural products and experiences serves as a critical mechanism linking cultural entrepreneurship with livelihood improvement. This study contributes to the literature by extending cultural entrepreneurship research to the underexplored context of folk artists in developing economies and by identifying creative cultural production as a mediating mechanism through which heritage-based resources generate economic and social value. The findings provide practical implications for policymakers, cultural organizations, and practitioners seeking to promote heritage preservation while strengthening the economic sustainability of cultural communities within the creative economy.