How Do Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Bali Survive the Pandemic? A Qualitative Study in Buleleng, Tabanan, Gianyar, and Denpasar

Purpose: This study aims to explore the survival strategies carried out by local micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) actors to maintain their business, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic which lasted for more than two years. In Bali, the problems that arise with MSMEs are not only the layoff rate and loss of a number of consumers but also the emergence of competitors from new business actors who come from tourism workers affected by layoffs. Theoretical framework: Small and Medium Enterprises (Qosasi et.al: 2019) that are able to capture potential markets in the future are those who utilize Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in their business. Amadasun, D.O.E., Mutezo, A.T. (2022) show that the factors used to measure market-based strategies such as market orientation, the intensity of competition, and technology dynamics affect the competitive growth of SMEs. However, studies on the survival of SMEs in Bali are still important, given their role as the government's safety valve, namely the economic solution in times of crisis. Design/methodology/approach: The research was conducted using a qualitative approach through in-depth interviews with MSME actors at four locations in Bali, namely Buleleng, Tabanan, Gianyar, and Denpasar. From forty-two MSME owners, we found out four major implications of MSMEs’ survival strategies amid the pandemic and in response to major layoffs and skyrocketing competitions which are: revisiting the implications of business agility, understanding the options for market penetration, gaining support from the government, and leveraging product development ideas. Findings: People's lifestyles lead business actors to think creatively, as part of the creative industry. Creativity and innovation are mandatory in the creative industry. People's lifestyles that are increasingly developing along with the capitalist movement which always seduces the public with the various product trends it creates have become opportunities for business actors, including SMEs. The existence of the community's need for clothing, food, and ritual products as major needs, has led SMEs business actors to penetrate products and markets. Produce the products to fulfill domestic needs. Products that were initially consumed by tourists were developed into local products, in order to meet the needs of people who want a product with a western image. In practice, not only are products diversified, but the way of marketing is also shifting from offline to online. Platforms in the form of YouTube Facebook Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp are the choices for business actors, both in urban and rural areas spread across Bali. Research, Practical & Social implications: This research would hope to clearly navigate MSME actors toward the most applicable survival strategies in their respective region and enable an interchange of ideas of other tactical plans through a comparative business differentiation supplemented by this informed research.