Fantrepreneurs in The Sharing Economy: Cocreating Neotribal Events

Abstract

"The purpose of this article is to explore fan event organizers’ (i.e., fantrepreneurs) cocreation processes linked to their fandom and neotribal characteristics as enacted within the sharing economy. In so doing, the article introduces the conceptual frameworks for understanding fantrepreneurs and subsequent cocreation of neotribal events. The article combines conceptual research methods with an analysis of empirical data collected through interviews with fantrepreneurs to enhance the explanatory power of the proposed frameworks. Findings show that there is a strong relationship between the collaborative consumption of fantrepreneurs and their neotribal lifestyle characteristics, which can be leveraged to enhance collaborative and cocreation patterns. This relationship is moderated by the factors of authenticity, nostalgia, autonomy, and anticommercialization that fantrepreneurs exhibit through the cocreation of (and within) neotribal fandom events. This integrated perspective marks fantrepreneurship as an emerging phenomenon within the sharing economy by shedding light on the cocreation patterns, moderating factors, and their interaction effects that explain the relationship between collaborative consumption and neotribalism characterizing the behavior of fantrepreneurs. The article conceptualizes the emergence of fantrepreneurs and cocreation of neotribal events providing an interdisciplinary foundation for future research that integrates literature on fandom, cocreation, and neotribalism. The resulting frameworks contribute to the understanding of fantrepreneurship as a manifestation of the sharing economy, which brings forward new fan patterns and practices in events."