Sustainability business model : a case study of the evolution of activity system by eco-design and eco-innovation practices to value wine production

Innovation, sustainability, sustainability innovations are the challenges that today's businesses are facing. While many scholarly research has produced a great deal of useful knoweldge about various forms of sustainability and innovation and their integration in business models, there has been no attention given to the process through which a business activity model evolves from a quality management system to a sustainability business model. In this paper, through a case study, we address this gap in research by focusing on the evolution of management practices related to the dynamics of new knowledge introduced by management innovations, i.e. the implementation of management tools, ideas, processes and practices in organizations, intended to alter the way in which the managerial work is performed and to further organizational goals. Building on Engeström theoretical model of activity system and expansive learning, we show how a French wine Château has learned to improve its capabilities to reinvent its business model through the implementation of ISO standards and created sustainability values to its products, services and customers. Our results show how sustainable development is achieved through the implementation of eco-design and eco-innovation practices. They also show that sustainability in business models and practices is a dynamic and expansive learning mechanism. It is leveraged by management tools and management philosophy that help organizations exploiting their good practices, and exploring and seizing in their environment and among their key partners, the opportunities that can reconfigure the value of their products and services.