The concept of knowledge and the process of knowledge sharing in ethnic minority microbusinesses remain neglected in contemporary debates even if their role for economic development is recognized. Drawing on a culturalist view, we explore how knowledge is defined and shared in a local niche market. Thematic analysis of semistructured qualitative interviews with 32 ownermanagers and 11 employee-managers reveals that, contrary to studies on larger firms, local knowledge creation and sharing narrowly based on ethnic strengths are valuable sources of competitive advantage. Our study has implications for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners in exploring, supporting, and integrating ethnic minority microbusinesses.

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It is argued in this paper that: ethnic minority population and their enterprises, predominated by South Asians, are growing faster than their mainstream counterparts in the UK; past research paid more attention to either South Asian ethnic minority SMEs based in and around London only or owned by Indian entrepreneurs only than South Asian ethnic minority SMEs elsewhere in the UK or owned by Pakistani and Bangladeshi entrepreneurs. Further scholarly investigation is needed to explain: the relationship between educational levels and entrepreneurial orientation; and intra-ethnic minority entrepreneurial differences between South Asian ethnic minority entrepreneurs in the UK by expanding the research scope both geographically and contextually. Key words: Small and Medium Enterprises, South Asian Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship, Ethnic Minority Enterprises, Profile of Asian Businesses, Role of SMEs in Economic GrowthReference to this paper should be made as follows: Haq, M. (xxxx) 'South Asian ethnic minority small and medium enterprises in the UK: a review and research agenda', Int. J. Entrepreneurship and Small Business, Vol. X, No. Y, pp.xxx-xxx. Biographical notes:Muhibul Haq is a Social Researcher and is currently affiliated with the School of Management, University of Bradford. His research interests are strategic human capital and ethnic minority enterprises. He has over 12 years of industry experience as a practitioner in human resource management.

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