Alternative enterprises, rhythms and (post)capitalism: Mapping spatio-temporal practices of reproduction, escape and intervention

The growing discomfort about contemporary capitalism has rekindled interest in alternative forms of entrepreneurship. Broadly conceived as pre-eminent social change agents, alternative enterprises – variously referred to as public, social, sustainable, eco- or transformative enterprises – are increasingly seen as holding the promise of a type of commercial endeavor capable of transcending the blatant excesses of capitalism. This debate, albeit important, lacks theoretical depth and critical grounding. To address this situation, we draw on Henri Lefebvre’s work on capitalism, rhythms and everyday life to develop a conceptual vocabulary attentive to the controversial and shifting relationship between alternative enterprises and capitalism. Specifically, based on Lefebvre’s tripartite framework of rhythms (isorhythmia, eurhythmia and arrhythmia), we offer a conceptual reading that aspires to map how three alternative enterprises (work integration social enterprises, urban recovery enterprises and entrepreneurial squats) variously reproduce, escape or intervene in the regular unfolding of the rhythms of capitalism. Pinpointing that the relationship between alternative enterprises and capitalism is more controversial than both celebratory and alarmist studies would suggest, the main contribution this article makes is to raise awareness that alternative enterprises intermingle reactionary and disruptive tendencies in often-unexpected ways. We conclude by calling for prospective research using rhythmanalysis as a corporeal mode of analysis that sets out to sense moments of reproduction and breakthrough which alternative enterprises’ enactment of different rhythms entail.