SURVIVAL OF FIRMS IN CRISIS: EVIDENCE FROM ANTALYA TOURISM CITY

Abstract

Firm survival in tourism cities has long been a topic ofdiscussion, due to particularly the fragile nature of the tourismindustry. Crises make tourism cities even more fragile, whichmakes them an ideal case for studying the effects of crises on firmsurvival. Antalya, Turkey's leading tourist destination, hassuffered from economic and political crises in recent years. Thisstudy investigates the factors influencing firm survival in a crisisridden tourism city. The results of a time-discrete survivalanalysis show that firm survival depends on firm-, industry-, andlocation-specific factors. Business survival declines in times ofdownturns. The survival rate is higher for smaller and youngerfirms and lower for corporate firms. There are no differencesbetween foreign owned and domestic firms.