The business term "Gazelle" was coined in the 1980s by the American scientist David Birch who was one of the first to recognize how important fast-growing companies are for creating jobs in the economy:

• Elephants are large enterprises that employ many people but are more poised to lay-offs rather than recruiting.
• Mice are the very small one-person shops, who do not intend to grow and are working for their breadwin.
• Gazelles, however, are the fast-growing companies where a lot of new jobs are created, and are pillars in the economy.