The Mediating Effect of Environmental Proactivity on the Influence of Stakeholder Pressure and Environmental Strategy of Wineries in Spain

Abstract

The role of environmental proactivity to explain the relationship between the stakeholder pressure and environmental strategy of wineries, both at process and product levels, is analyzed. We have applied a model of structural equations to a sample of 312 Spanish wineries. Consistent with prior research, the findings show a positive relationship betweenstakeholder pressure and the implementation of environmental strategies. It has been demonstrated both for operational environmental strategy (process level) and for environmental marketing strategy (product level) in an industry that had not been previously analyzed in the literature, that is, wineries. Since the influence of stakeholder pressure on the environmental strategy is greater through environmental proactivity, we found that environmental proactivity mediates the stakeholder pressure–environmental strategy relationship partially. This relevant novelty suggests that to enhance the integration of the environment into the business strategy, wineries’ managers should be informed and aware of the need to respond proactively rather than reactively to the stakeholder pressure.