Place attachment and social legitimacy: Revisiting the sustainable entrepreneurship journey

• This paper revisits the sustainable entrepreneurship journey by examining the role of place.
• We explore the distinct journeys of two high-growth sustainable ventures.
• Emotional and instrumental place attachment is decisive in shaping the venture journey.
• Journey paths change depending on place attachment and place-based norms of legitimacy.
• We introduce a ‘place-based’ path model for future sustainable entrepreneurship research.

This paper revisits the sustainable entrepreneurship journey by introducing a ‘place-based’ sustainable venture path model. We suggest that distinguishing between emotional (‘caring about the place’) and instrumental (‘using the place’) place attachment of sustainable entrepreneurs deepens our understanding of how place-based challenges of sustainable venture legitimacy are managed over time. We conclude with avenues for future sustainable entrepreneurship research.