Umit GumustenPerhaps the most immediate archetype that comes to mind any time the issue of business comes up is that of a strong and ruthless capitalist. That ideal dominates the popular narratives of enterprise: an unrelenting pursuit of profit, growth at all costs, and a competitive edge that leaves little room for anything other than self-interest.
In this story, business is reduced to a question of a matter of market dominance. The most supreme ideal is that of a corporate tycoon who annihilates competition, stockpiles tons of wealth, and scales up ceaselessly.
But is this all that is to an entrepreneur?
Must one be capitalist first to be a businessperson?
As a non-capitalist entrepreneur, I believe the answer is no, plain as that. It is not only possible to run a successful business without subscribing to the hardcore mindset of capitalism but also key that we begin to consider and take up alternatives, which enable and focus on social good, sustainability, and community well-being. Throughout this blog, I will argue against business being synonymous with capitalism. Instead, entrepreneurs function under structures that emphasize value generation other than profit making, impose societal impact through positive change, and fulfill the tenets of socialism as expressed through principles of equity, equality, and collective prosperity.
Companies Challenge the Capitalist Model
As it is, capitalism is inherently aggressive and profit-driven in its pursuit of growth. Under this model, businesses are expected to put their primary focus on maximizing shareholder value above everything else, disregarding the environmental, social, or ethical implications of their actions. An approach like this fosters a mentality of “survival of the fittest,” where competition stresses the need for businesses to cut costs by exploiting labor and compromising ethics in the name of better returns.
But many entrepreneurs do not fit this mold. In fact, many are driven by the need to create something worthwhile, adding value in their community and contributing toward a better world. These entrepreneurs look upon business not as an avenue to attain wealth for its own sake but as a means of effecting change positively. In this sense, entrepreneurship can rhyme with socialist values in terms of fairness, cooperation, sustainability, and equitable distribution of resources.
Let’s start off by breaking the ultimate myth: not every entrepreneur is out to become a cutthroat capitalist. Not all businesses are focused on infinite growth, nor does that act as one universal definition of success. In fact, most businesses are content with staying small in nature, serving only their community, or being driven by a passion for producing quality goods that really may solve an existing problem rather than simply turning over a profit.
The Non-capitalist Entrepreneur: A Focus on People and Planet
At the very core of the idea, non-capitalist entrepreneurship is based on the belief that businesses can, and should, place people and the planet’s well-being over and above the pursuit of endless profit. Of course, this does not mean that the non-capitalist entrepreneurs are anti-profit, per se. Actually, for a business to survive, it needs profit.
It just should not be the driving force behind every decision.
To the non-capitalist entrepreneur, the focus is not just on financial value, but value created beyond monetary benefit-paying a living wage and offering good benefits to employees, sourcing materials in an environmentally sustainable manner, or offering products and services that contribute to the well-being of customers. These entrepreneurs know full well that business success doesn’t come strictly from dollars-and-cents calculations; rather, it is measured by how people’s lives are improved, and how the planet gets preserved in good health.
Social enterprises, cooperatives, and B Corporations -business models that are certified for their social and environmental performances- are examples of businesses in tune with non-capitalist principles. By explicitly eschewing the capitalist dogma of profit at all cost, these businesses model a different way of putting social responsibility first, earth stewardship, and ethical practices in business. Their successes both attest to how one can build successful businesses without having to embrace ruthless competition or to exploit labor and resources recklessly.
Cooperative Models: Redefining Ownership and Wealth Distribution
But probably the most powerful alternative to the business model of capitalism is the cooperative. A cooperative is an entity wherein ownership lies with the workers, decisions are made on a shared basis, and the profits are equitably distributed rather than being concentrated in the hands of a few shareholders or owners. It is a business model that runs opposite to the very notion of wealth accumulation by a few at the expense of the many.
Worker cooperatives are businesses in which employees have a voice in the operation of the company and a share in its profits. The model is drawing upon socialist conceptions of equality and democracy: rather than being at the mercy of an absent owner or board of directors, workers are in control of their economic fates. Success for a cooperative is not only defined in terms of financial success, but also by the satisfaction experienced by workers and the community they serve.
Take, for example, Mondragon Corporation, a giant worker cooperative from Spain. Mondragon itself is proof that co-operatives can thrive in the global economy, but indeed, they can compete and flourish. With tens of thousands of worker-owners, Mondragon operates in several sectors and has proved well that democratic governance and fair wealth distribution are not incompatible with business success.
Profit Isn’t a Dirty Word, But It’s Not the Only Goal
First, it should be obvious that non-capitalist entrepreneurship does not, in every way, abjure the profit motive. Profits are essential to the sustainability of any enterprise, but, in a system of non-capitalist entrepreneurship, it is a means to an end rather than an end in itself. The non-capitalist entrepreneur does not seek to maximize profits but instead to reinvest those profits in her workers, her community, and her causes. They view their businesses as vehicles for generating positive social impact, rather than as avenues to personal enrichment.
That is, whereas the capitalist ideal seeks untrammeled growth, non-capitalist entrepreneurs can seek growth in more measured and sustainable forms-one respectful of environmental limits and long-term community well-being over immediate financial gain. In this respect, such a perspective is desperately needed with regard to global challenges such as climate change, inequality, and resource depletion, since business-as-usual can no longer be an option.
Businesses as Forces for Good: A Different Vision of Success
This is actually one of the more insidious trends of the capitalist mindset: defining business success using only financial metrics-revenue, profit margins, market share, and the like. Yet as non-capitalist entrepreneurs, we can and should take it upon ourselves to redefine what success looks like. Success can mean stable livelihoods for workers, creating products that advance people’s quality of life, or helping to preserve our planet.
One can consider the notion of “triple bottom line,” where success is measured in terms of profit, people, and the planet. Today, this frame is one that many businesses are taking up, given their realization of the fact that financial success cannot be the exclusive aim if a sustainable and equitable future is to be desired. Companies like Patagonia have long been avid believers in the triple bottom line-that one can run a business and still show concern for social and environmental issues.
For instance, Patagonia has based its business on environmental activism through sustainable product production and giving a big fraction of its profits to environmental causes. The urge from the company’s “Don’t Buy This Jacket” campaign for consumers to reflect if they really need another jacket was a bluntly anti-consumerist message seldom, if ever, heard within the capitalist world. Yet, despite this – or maybe because of it – Patagonia has emerged to become a phenomenally successful business and proves that businesses don’t necessarily have to play by the rules of capitalism to be successful.
Ethical Entrepreneurship: Balancing Profit and Purpose
Another very important part of non-capitalist entrepreneurship would be that businesses are to be powered by a sense of purpose instead of profit. Purpose-driven entrepreneurs use having a drive to make an impact on the world through the advance of social justice, protection of the environment, or even improvements in public health. Such entrepreneurs really do see their businesses as vehicles for change, not just machines for churning out profits.
One powerful example of ethical entrepreneurship is the rise of social enterprises. These organizations use business models to solve some of the most important social or environmental problems. While traditional businesses might have making money as the ultimate goal, social enterprises put their mission first, even though they also aim to be financially viable. Such businesses prove that entrepreneurship can serve as an actual force for good: it tackles some of the most critical global challenges while generating income.
Social entrepreneurs are those who are redefining success in business that one can have a higher purpose yet still be financially viable. They comprehend fully that a business is, in fact, worth something not because of how many billions it generates in revenues but because of the positive changes it brings into the world.
Embracing Sustainability: A Business Imperative
The growth in the focus on sustainability perhaps is the most conspicuous expression of the non-capitalist entrepreneurial ethos. In a world that faces the real existential threat of climate change, increasingly businesses are recognizing the fact that the capitalist model of endless growth simply is not sustainable. There is a growing adoption by entrepreneurs of sustainable business practices from carbon emission reduction to the adoption of circular economy models that minimize waste and resource consumption.
To the non-capitalist entrepreneur, sustainability is much more than just a buzzword; it is a basic guiding principle in the operations of business. They realize that a healthy economy can only exist on a healthy planet, and that businesses have a responsibility to minimize harm to the environment. This might mean investment in renewable energy, sourcing material in ethical manners, designing products built to last rather than to be discarded after a short life span.
Further, non-capitalist entrepreneurs regard sustainability not only through the lens of the environment but also through a social lens. They realize that communities that bear the most pain of environmental degradation are often those that contribute the least, and they try to right this wrong by creating businesses that are not only sustainable but also equitable.
Community Building: It’s a We Thing
Capitalist entrepreneurship too often celebrates individualism: the lone genius, the self-made millionaire, the cutthroat competitor. But non-capitalist entrepreneurship differs in its foregrounding of community, collaboration, and collective success. Rather than seeing other businesses as competition to be vanquished, the non-capitalist entrepreneur sees them as collaborators, future partners in the construction of a better world.
That is the collaborative approach manifesting itself in an increasing number of businesses set up by organizations collaborating on solving shared problems -be it climate change, social inequality, or economic instability. The entrepreneurs are finding out more and more that with collaboration, they can really do much more than when working by themselves.
The spirit of sharing finds manifestation in the shared economy, whereby individuals share resources and access goods and services with minimal waste, hence more sustainable consumption patterns. The sharing economy, popularized by companies such as Airbnb and Uber, has its criticisms, with some people claiming that such companies have strayed away from the ideals of socialism in terms of fairness and equality. That said, the mere core principle -be it sharing for the common good- remains a potent alternative to conventional modes of ownership and consumption under capitalism.
Social Justice and Economic Democracy: Entrepreneurship as Activism
Business to the non-capitalist entrepreneur is not only about the bottom line but also a business about fighting for social justice, democratizing the economy, and economic rights. The entrepreneurs see their business as empowerment for the marginalized communities by addressing issues like inequality and offering opportunities that have not been afforded to them through the traditional economic system.
Entrepreneurship for many of these non-capitalists is an activism vehicle -be it in workers’ rights, racial and gender equality, or even movements related to environmental justice. They understand businesses should command influence and power in effecting social change, as evidenced by exactly what they have done and stand for in building their companies.
Conclusion: A New Paradigm for Entrepreneurship
You don’t need to be a capitalist to be an entrepreneur. Assuming that entrepreneurship is the same as capitalism is an outdated, narrow term. From cooperatives and social enterprises to purpose-driven companies and B Corps, alternatives from all corners prove that businesses can thrive while paying attention to people and the planet, social good.
As non-capitalist entrepreneurs, now is the time to reclaim what business success is or could be; we could even create companies founded on purpose instead of profit; we can generate value in excess of financial value to promote wellbeing in our communities and the environment. Above all, we can prove to the world that entrepreneurship does not destroy competitors or accumulate riches for its sake, but rather it deals with building a better, more equable, and more sustainable world for everyone.
