Dream of the Dram: Placemaking in the Scottish Whisky Industry

Much of the existing research on rural entrepreneurship examines the limitations associated with operating in peripheral regions including limited access to finance, infrastructure, and skilled labour. However, decidedly less work explores the agential processes through which entrepreneurs can transform remote areas facing such issues into economically and environmentally sustainable places through entrepreneurial placemaking. Placemaking involves a dynamic and participatory process of (re)shaping the meanings associated with a place. This shifts the focus to entrepreneurial agency, exploring how rural entrepreneurs leverage local resources and interact with local communities to create economic and social value. This is important, as venturing in these rural contexts plays a critical role in reducing inequalities, alleviating poverty, and promoting sustainable futures. To investigate entrepreneurial placemaking, we adopt a place-based perspective within the context of the Scottish whisky industry. This sector plays a vital role in the Scottish economy, particularly in rural areas where distilleries are increasingly seen as vehicles for community regeneration. Distilleries often draw on their connection too place and provenance. This deep tie to local heritage and tradition make it an ideal setting for exploring placemaking. Findings show that entrepreneurial activities in the Scottish whisky industry not only preserve cultural heritage ut also foster community regeneration and sustainability by creating employment and embedding local identity in their ventures. These rural entrepreneurs strategically use place-based attributes, such as geography and history, to shape economic and social value in these remote areas. This study contributes to the literature by demonstrating how rural entrepreneurs use placemaking to transform their spatial environments, particularly through the retelling, revitalising, and reinventing of local narratives and resources.