Regional Formation and Development Studies

The article examines the impact of the identity of a gymnasium on parents’ decision-making when choosing a school for their child.

The article analyzes the practical aspects of quality evaluation of beauty therapy services quality at the thepractical teaching center and describes the beauty therapy service quality and its criteria of introdusing quality test results from perspective of a consumer This article is based on the analysis of scientific and normativeliterature and the results of quality research which are based on the model of beauty therapy service quality evaluation.

The development process of any area is anfractuous. It is a multi-stage process. It starts with the area’s attractiveness, attractingresources, which are necessary for its development and ensures their preservation and retention for the area. When using theseresources optimally, efficiently and productively, area’s competitive advantages are achieved and, the area becomes competitive.Competitiveness is driving force and potential of growth of the territory. Growth facilitates quantitative changes of the resources,i.e. accumulation and development of resources, leading to state of development of the territory. The purpose of the process of territorialdevelopment is qualitative distribution and management of these resources aiming at achieving the concrete result – state ofdevelopment of the territory. In this article, the author structures stages of the territory development process in a definite sequencetaking into account earlier developed theoretical findings in this sphere, as well as she completes the layout of these stages with herown scientific view concerning the final aim of the territorial development to be achieved in the process of the development of theterritory. This aim is the territory’s state of development, which can be measured and compared, when considering success of theprocess of territorial development.

This article analyses the Maritime Sector economic grow impact to Lithuania’s economy from a Cluster perspective. The potential competitive Maritime industry Cluster in Lithuania is on interest because Lithuanian Maritime Sector is expanding its connections to the whole European region, going beyond the boundaries of anyone industry sector, is supported by EU Strategic documents, but the steps towards clustering still are tentative and negligible. Assessing the Maritime sector impact on Lithuania's economy, the total economic impact (direct and indirect) was calculated by using the following indicators: number of Employees, Turnover and Value Added at Production Cost (VAPC). The period for the evaluation of the statistical givens trends has been chosen for 5 years, according to Official 2007 – 2011 period statistical givens, provided by Department of Statistics.

Social entrepreneurship is an important component of the European social market economy that is based on the principles of solidarity and responsibility and the priorities regarding the individual and social goals; it promotes social responsibility and social inclusion. However, in practice, social enterprises face various problems that negatively affect their competitiveness. The present research has set an aim to examine the competitiveness of social entrepreneurship in Latvia. To achieve the aim, a case study was carried out to identify the factors affecting the competitiveness of social entrepreneurship and its competitive advantages and disadvantages in comparison with conventional enterprises. The research found that the key competitive advantages of social entrepreneurship were the story told by social enterprises and their employee motivation, while the negative effects regarding competitiveness were as follows: the lack of government support for social entrepreneurship, insufficient information in society about social entrepreneurship and the social value created by it, as well as various other factors in the internal environment of an enterprise.