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.