The winery between sustainability and terroir: the Sagrantino DOCG case study

The wine sector is one of the most relevant engines for the economic development in many specialized areas and contributes to it in terms of employment and companies revenues (Bigliardi and Galati, 2013), but also by protecting and valorizing the landscape, by promoting the local gastronomy, by attracting visitors and tourists. The wine represents a set of values, symbols, and traditions rooted in the area in which the winery is based, and when the wineries have good reputation in the market they concur to enhance the value of the area (Gallucci and Nave, 2012). At the same time, wine production can contribute to soil, water, and air pollution, reduction of agrobiodiversity and industrial diversification by excessive focus which drains resources from other sectors, etc. Although the relationship between wineries and their territory is a well known topic, the literature on how wine businesses the strategy reflect on the rural development is rather scarce and requires further, more in-depth studies of all aspects of the business (Orth et al., 2007). Indeed, case study method is appropriate for this topic because it allow to compare the wine production to other sectore (De Massis et al., 2014) and to understand its specific mechanisms and dynamics (Chrisman et al., 2012). The aim of this research is to fill this gap up. Our paper analyses how a strategy based on the combination of tradition and innovation can benefit the wineries and the territories where they are located. In particular, it identifies which business model could be adopted in order to pursue both the environmental sustainability and the rural development, by combining environmental oriented practices and typicity. This research is based on a qualitative methodology and focuses on one case study. We analysed Arnaldo Caprai winery, an internationally recognised Italian wine company, characterized by a highly innovative business approach and a strong link with the territory. The case study is relevant as it indicates that sustainability and rural development can coexist in order to achieve competitiveness and market success, and their interaction can provide a spill over that involves other wineries and companies. Methodology According to the work of Pucci et al. (2020) we have developed the research as a longitudinal case study (Howard-Grenville, Metzger, & Meyer, 2013), to show the way in which a company involves its stakeholders in producing sustainable territory development. As a primary source of data, we have employed interviews and informal speeches with Marco Caprai, the winery owner, and with other fundamental professional figures who over the years have helped to implement and support corporate strategies relating to the creation of value in the area and the increase in sustainability. We have interviewed our respondents regarding key events and major investment decisions that had occurred in the past, using interviews recorded and transcribed, fields notes, internal reports, and several visits to the winery. Specifically, some of the research group have known Arnaldo Caprai since early 2000, participating in various events. Moreover, we have collected data coming from the specialized press and the video channel. The different data are triangulated for ensuring internal validity of multiple sources data (Creswell, 2009; Yin, 2013). The data have been analyzed by both grounded theory and temporal bracketing. Firstly, we have identified the key events witnessing the sustainable project and investments made by the company, basing our discussion on the three main phases of existence, survival, success (Pucci et al., 2020, Churchill and Lewis, 1983). Then, we have explained how the winery has developed sustainability and territorial development in each of the three periods. We have based our analysis by using the approach by Gioia et al. (2013). According to the grounded theory, we define first-order concepts and successively, aggregating concepts, second-order issues, and at the end, by iterating data, we find the aggregate dimensions. Then, we have linked the emerged themes using “temporal bracketing”, connecting the action of previous periods to changes in subsequent periods. Results and conclusions The results of the iteration of data are three synthetic dimensions: i) Supporting territorial development; ii) Wine quality and agricultural sustainability challenges; iii) Values communication and stakeholder engagement. The main results show that a company can involve multiple stakeholders becoming the driving force pushing for the territorial development, thanks to their investments in the territory and to the diffusion of its values strictly rooted in the area.