L’imprenditorialità locale per il tempo libero.

Free time spent locally is what several firms have in common, but only a few of them are managed like real leisure enterprises and recreational facilities. This paper describes the business person’s point of view in carrying out an enterprise which attracts local residents’ leisure time. The purpose of the paper is to explain and facilitate the sustainable socio-economic development of small firms during their establishing years. Firstly, is proposed a conceptual framework of the literature about local leisure management. Secondly, a survey of Pistoia’s economic system shows leisure time behaviour of the local community. Next, the managers of local gyms are interviewed to find out how they go about attracting people to spend their leisure time there. Lastly, the study findings are used to set up the main decision points about the process of local leisure entrepreneurship.