Business Model Innovation to Address Vegetable Supply Chain Issues: A Case Study of an Indian Startup

Abstract

Purpose: Agricultural supply chains witness several challenges, which result in increased cost of operations, high wastages, and low efficiency. In the case of vegetable supply chains (VSCs), the intensity of challenges is very high due to perishability. Literature suggests various operations research tools for supply chain management of perishables, but there is a paucity of research highlighting the real models adopted by real players in the market while making revenue. This paper investigates and presents how a startup can innovate its business model to meet the VSC issues by adopting a single case study methodology. Design: The phenomenon was studied by convergent interviewing with the company’s key personnel and gathering information from the company’s key documents followed by content analysis. Findings: The study shows real practices adopted by a startup to cater to the challenges of VSCs in India by incorporating various tools of productivity enhancement and waste reduction. It highlights the adoption of a traceability system, production planning mechanism, reduced food miles, and green initiatives contributing to an innovative business model. The study maps the business model of the startup with the business model concept provided by Lindgardt and colleagues [ 2009 ] and states two more dimensions, i.e. “Client relationship management” and “Sustainability activities” to expand the mentioned configuration. Originality: The study is the first of its kind to highlight the Business Model Innovation of a startup to address the VSC challenges in the Indian context. Practical contribution: The study has important managerial implications useful for finding our new value propositions in a VSC firm by shortening and effectively integrating the supply chain while minimizing information asymmetry to achieve economies and sustainability. Theoretical contribution: This study has strengthened the methodological advances in the study of business models based upon earlier validated configurations. It contributes to the extant research by adding two more elements “Client relationship management” and “Sustainability activities” in a business model configuration.