A study of individual and market level factors to estimate key determinants of financial success among solopreneurs

This study investigates how personality traits, age, risk propensity, and structural factors influence the long-term financial success of solopreneurs, defined as solo-founded ventures typically characterized by the absence of a dedicated workforce during the early years of operation. Using data from 4,470 solo-founded ventures in the German Institute for Employment Research/Centre for European Economic Research start-up panel, we model sustained profitability over the first 7 years as a binary outcome and test seven hypotheses grounded in trait, decision-making, and resource-based theories. The regression results show that two psychological traits - Openness and Conscientiousness - significantly increase the likelihood of long-term profitability (odds ratio OR = 1.616; OR = 1.279). Preference for low-risk projects (OR = 1.607) and being age ≤ 50 years (OR = 2.126) further enhance success odds. Conversely, general risk attitude, gender, sector affiliation, and research and development involvement show no significant effects. The results challenge assumptions about sectoral or innovation-based advantages and emphasize the significance of psychological variables in solopreneurship. This study contributes to a multidimensional understanding of entrepreneurial success and supports the development of evidence-based support strategies tailored to individual trait-context combinations.