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Business model innovation for sustainability: a food start-up case study

Maria Vittoria Franceschelli (Department of Business and Law, University of Milan-Bicocca, Milan, Italy)
Gabriele Santoro (Department of Management, University of Turin, Turin, Italy)
Elena Candelo (Department of Management, University of Turin, Turin, Italy)

British Food Journal

ISSN: 0007-070X

Article publication date: 31 July 2018

Issue publication date: 20 September 2018

6417

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and present the way in which a food start-up can develop business model innovations, taking into account the importance of social and environmental issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors studied an Italian pizzeria, implementing the illustrative single-case study methodology, to answer the research question: “how can food start-ups develop a sustainable business model innovation?”

Findings

The study highlights sustainable elements for each component of the business model configuration provided by Osterwalder to provide a deeper view of the sustainable business model concept.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the extant research introducing the concept of sustainable innovation within the business model literature. It concludes that, within the food industry, especially for start-ups, the development of sustainable business model innovation is particularly important because the industry is itself linked with nature and human respect. Moreover, it suggests a methodological analysis of the business model configuration, which will help to develop clearer and more accurate and influential research.

Keywords

Citation

Franceschelli, M.V., Santoro, G. and Candelo, E. (2018), "Business model innovation for sustainability: a food start-up case study", British Food Journal, Vol. 120 No. 10, pp. 2483-2494. https://doi.org/10.1108/BFJ-01-2018-0049

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited

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