TY - JOUR
T1 - Value co-creation in the beverage and food industry
AU - Tardivo, Giuseppe
AU - Thrassou, Alkis
AU - Viassone, Milena
AU - Serravalle, Francesca
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to define and describe how consumers may constitute an integral part of small and medium enterprises’ (SMEs) value co-creation process in the food and beverage (F&B) industry, and to provide practicable implementation recommendations to firms in the Piedmont region that are important and prominent in this sector. Design/methodology/approach: The research methodology rests on a multiple case study design, applied to three F&B Piedmont SMEs that produce beer, water and starters: Baladin, Lurisia and Galfré. Findings: Results show an increasing awareness by firms of the important role played by customers in value co-creation, though limited to specific roles in the case of SMEs. Research limitations/implications: The research is limited by its exploratory nature, though the findings and conclusions drawn provide a solid foundation for further development and testing on the subject. Practical implications: The case studies’ results allow the reader to understand the importance of the increasing awareness of the role played by customers in value co-creation, especially on the WWB, where costs are minimizing. Originality/value: The research’s value stems from fact that there are few existing studies on the ways to engage customers in value co-creation. Moreover, these studies, contrary to the present research, are largely theoretical and either have no direct applicability or are limited to a single case.
AB - Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to define and describe how consumers may constitute an integral part of small and medium enterprises’ (SMEs) value co-creation process in the food and beverage (F&B) industry, and to provide practicable implementation recommendations to firms in the Piedmont region that are important and prominent in this sector. Design/methodology/approach: The research methodology rests on a multiple case study design, applied to three F&B Piedmont SMEs that produce beer, water and starters: Baladin, Lurisia and Galfré. Findings: Results show an increasing awareness by firms of the important role played by customers in value co-creation, though limited to specific roles in the case of SMEs. Research limitations/implications: The research is limited by its exploratory nature, though the findings and conclusions drawn provide a solid foundation for further development and testing on the subject. Practical implications: The case studies’ results allow the reader to understand the importance of the increasing awareness of the role played by customers in value co-creation, especially on the WWB, where costs are minimizing. Originality/value: The research’s value stems from fact that there are few existing studies on the ways to engage customers in value co-creation. Moreover, these studies, contrary to the present research, are largely theoretical and either have no direct applicability or are limited to a single case.
KW - Customer involvement
KW - Food and beverage industry
KW - Open innovation
KW - Piedmont
KW - SMEs
KW - Value co-creation
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85031806088&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1108/BFJ-02-2017-0119
DO - 10.1108/BFJ-02-2017-0119
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85031806088
SN - 0007-070X
VL - 119
SP - 2359
EP - 2372
JO - British Food Journal
JF - British Food Journal
IS - 11
ER -