Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship Vol. 14, No. 2 (2009) 143–164 © World Scientific Publishing Company ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF ALBANIAN IMMIGRANT ENTREPRENEURS IN GREECE DAPHNE HALKIAS ∗ and NICHOLAS HARKIOLAKIS Hellenic American University 12 Kaplanon Street, Athens 10680, Greece ∗ daphne_halkias@yahoo.com PAUL THURMAN Mailman School of Public Policy Columbia University 420 West 118 Street, New York,NY 10027, USA MEENAKSHI RISHI Albers School of Business and Economics Seattle University Seattle, WA 98122, USA LAMBROS EKONOMOU ASPETE — School of Pedagogical and Technological Educators Neo Heraklion, 141 21 Athens, Greece SYLVA M. CARACATSANIS University of Exeter Amory Building, EX4 4RJ, Exeter, UK PATRICK DIMITRIS AKRIVOS Executive Coaching Consultants Halandri, 152 34, Athens, Greece Received June 2008 Revised December 2008 Greece has experienced rapid growth in immigrant and refugee populations since 1990. Although most are immigrants from Albania and throughout the Balkan region, some immigrant and refugee groups arriving in Greece also come from the former Soviet Union, Southeast Asia and Africa. Some of these newcomers have started small businesses in their quest to become economically self-sufficient, serve the consumer needs of fellow newcomers, and integrate into community life. The purpose of this research is two-fold: to review the extant literature on social and economic factors influencing immigrant entrepreneurship in Greece, and to determine characteristics and business profiles of Alba- nian immigrant-owned small businesses within the municipality of Attiki — the location of Athens, Greece’s capital city and largest urban center. Keywords: Immigrant; entrepreneurs; integration; self-sufficiency; Albanian; Greece. 143