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How do entrepreneurs persist when faced with prolonged adversity and the constant threat of death? Drawing on rich qualitative data from wartime Ukraine, we introduce “normality patch(work)ing” as a form of practical and symbolic persistence under extreme conditions.

Entrepreneurship is widely recognised as a vital force for development and recovery in adverse and dangerous contexts. Entrepreneurs not only operate but also often persevere and persist in hostile environments, demonstrating resilience and enabling individuals and communities to endure. Through their actions, they re-establish routines, provide goods and services, and sustain a sense of continuity in disrupted contexts. Yet research has primarily focused on how entrepreneurs respond to immediate crises. We know far less about how and why they persist when adversity becomes long-term, yet remains highly unpredictable and deadly. How and why do entrepreneurs persist under the constant, immediate presence of death? To explore this question, we draw on an inductive, qualitative study of 14 entrepreneurs operating in Ukraine during the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war. Our data includes solicited diaries, interviews, ongoing follow-up communication, and archival materials. We find that when entrepreneurs are frequently reminded of the fragility of life and their own mortality, they engage in a practice we term “normality patch(work)ing”—a set of efforts aimed at sustaining normality despite persistent risk. This practice involves two interwoven elements: 1. Repair work – restoring damaged routines and spaces, and innovating new ones better suited to shifting conditions; 2. Signalling life – actively creating and performing continuity for others and themselves. This study contributes to the literature on entrepreneurship in adversity by showing how entrepreneurs engage in both practical and symbolic acts to sustain a sense of normality—even when death is always near.