Who – the protagonist
Simon Pietro Felice, CEO of Grupo Caviro until September 2023.
What?
Caviro is Italy’s largest wine cooperative, consisting of 29 members, including 27 local wine cooperatives and 12,000 producers in seven Italian regions. Caviro boasts a total of 35,200 hectares of vines.
Grape production in 2021 was 660,000 tons (approximately 9.4% of Italy’s grapes) translating to sales of 193 million litres of wine.
Why?
Caviro stood out from the crowd with its unique circular economy model by which it recovered almost all the waste generated by the supply chain.
This comprehensive approach to managing organic waste from harvesting and winemaking complemented wine production perfectly, not just from an environmental and circular economy perspective, but also in terms of revenue and profit.
The approach ensured Caviro safely navigated the COVID-19 pandemic, but Simon wanted to make it clear to the cooperative members of the importance of continuing with a circular and sustainable approach.
When?
The group’s turnover in 2021 was €390 million, of which €120 million came from the circular economy - the selling of by-products. In 2022, Simon believed the profit from the circular economy would be double that of wine sales.
Where?
In 2021 Caviro sold a wide range of Italian wines aligned with international tastes in almost 80 countries including the UK, Germany, France, Switzerland and the US.
Key quote
What next?
Caviro wanted to be ready for the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Group was a leader in the market and in sustainability. They also wanted to be a beacon for those starting out on the road to sustainability.
Caviro’s latest example of sustainability help was the by-product of the by-product being a natural fertiliser they gave back to their winegrowers so they could feed their land.
What would the Group come up with for their next idea?
On reasons for writing the case…
Rocío and Enrique said: “The opportunity to write this case came from the Italian Advisory Board. Caviro is a member of this board, whose mission is to advise and support the food specialisation department of San Telmo Business School, pointing out those issues and challenges that interest the senior management of companies in this sector in Italy.
“One of the aspects of concern is sustainability, specifically everything related to circularity. Caviro offered itself as an example of a circular company that has managed to make sustainability a strategic pillar for the future of the company.”
On the case writing challenges…
Rocío and Enrique continued: “When writing a case, the biggest challenge is to ensure that it contains the necessary information so that the discussion in session is as rich as possible. We had to channel the reflection with a dilemma to be resolved and at the same time make the business model well understood. Caviro is the largest wine cooperative in Italy, but at the same time, it is experiencing exponential growth in the rest of its divisions, all related to grape by-products and closely linked to sustainable development. Often when we talk about sustainability, we only think about the environment, but for it to make sense, we must not forget the business sense.”
On teaching the case…
They added: “The experiences in the session discussing this case have been very enriching. The case allows us to see in a very tangible way that sustainability is not a fad and that there are companies that have been doing so for years out of necessity to endure over time. When the protagonist has also participated, appearing in the last minutes so that the participants can talk with him, it has been inspiring.”
On how the students react to the case…
They commented: “When discussing sustainability issues, we always find two types of participants: those who are convinced of its benefits and those who think that they must be sustainable out of obligation, but not because they believe it is positive. This case brings sustainability down to the tangible, demonstrating the advantages it can bring as long as it is linked to business. Participants usually end the session seeing sustainability as an opportunity.”
On case writing tips…
Rocío and Enrique explained: “To write a good case, one of the essential things is to ensure the company's conviction, time and dedication. Without their support, the case can become a task that can be hard to complete.
“It also helps to be clear about the pedagogical objectives that the case seeks to cover. In this way, it will be easier to focus on what is important when you have to decide what information should appear in the case and what should not, thus trying to be as concise and concrete as possible.
“And of course, have a dilemma or challenge that opens the whole discussion, with a protagonist with whom the participant can identify.”
Final word…
Rocío and Enrique concluded: “Cases are a very powerful tool for learning because they allow you to analyse situations that may have already happened to you as a participant or that will surely happen to you sooner or later.
“Nowadays, when you can access a lot of knowledge in any format, the case method is the only one that allows you to work on critical thinking, one of the few skills that always appears in the top attributes for the work of the future.”
The case
Who – the protagonist
Simon Pietro Felice, CEO of Grupo Caviro until September 2023.
What?
Caviro is Italy’s largest wine cooperative, consisting of 29 members, including 27 local wine cooperatives and 12,000 producers in seven Italian regions. Caviro boasts a total of 35,200 hectares of vines.
Grape production in 2021 was 660,000 tons (approximately 9.4% of Italy’s grapes) translating to sales of 193 million litres of wine.
Why?
Caviro stood out from the crowd with its unique circular economy model by which it recovered almost all the waste generated by the supply chain.
This comprehensive approach to managing organic waste from harvesting and winemaking complemented wine production perfectly, not just from an environmental and circular economy perspective, but also in terms of revenue and profit.
The approach ensured Caviro safely navigated the COVID-19 pandemic, but Simon wanted to make it clear to the cooperative members of the importance of continuing with a circular and sustainable approach.
When?
The group’s turnover in 2021 was €390 million, of which €120 million came from the circular economy - the selling of by-products. In 2022, Simon believed the profit from the circular economy would be double that of wine sales.
Where?
In 2021 Caviro sold a wide range of Italian wines aligned with international tastes in almost 80 countries including the UK, Germany, France, Switzerland and the US.
Key quote
What next?
Caviro wanted to be ready for the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Group was a leader in the market and in sustainability. They also wanted to be a beacon for those starting out on the road to sustainability.
Caviro’s latest example of sustainability help was the by-product of the by-product being a natural fertiliser they gave back to their winegrowers so they could feed their land.
What would the Group come up with for their next idea?
Author perspective
On reasons for writing the case…
Rocío and Enrique said: “The opportunity to write this case came from the Italian Advisory Board. Caviro is a member of this board, whose mission is to advise and support the food specialisation department of San Telmo Business School, pointing out those issues and challenges that interest the senior management of companies in this sector in Italy.
“One of the aspects of concern is sustainability, specifically everything related to circularity. Caviro offered itself as an example of a circular company that has managed to make sustainability a strategic pillar for the future of the company.”
On the case writing challenges…
Rocío and Enrique continued: “When writing a case, the biggest challenge is to ensure that it contains the necessary information so that the discussion in session is as rich as possible. We had to channel the reflection with a dilemma to be resolved and at the same time make the business model well understood. Caviro is the largest wine cooperative in Italy, but at the same time, it is experiencing exponential growth in the rest of its divisions, all related to grape by-products and closely linked to sustainable development. Often when we talk about sustainability, we only think about the environment, but for it to make sense, we must not forget the business sense.”
On teaching the case…
They added: “The experiences in the session discussing this case have been very enriching. The case allows us to see in a very tangible way that sustainability is not a fad and that there are companies that have been doing so for years out of necessity to endure over time. When the protagonist has also participated, appearing in the last minutes so that the participants can talk with him, it has been inspiring.”
On how the students react to the case…
They commented: “When discussing sustainability issues, we always find two types of participants: those who are convinced of its benefits and those who think that they must be sustainable out of obligation, but not because they believe it is positive. This case brings sustainability down to the tangible, demonstrating the advantages it can bring as long as it is linked to business. Participants usually end the session seeing sustainability as an opportunity.”
On case writing tips…
Rocío and Enrique explained: “To write a good case, one of the essential things is to ensure the company's conviction, time and dedication. Without their support, the case can become a task that can be hard to complete.
“It also helps to be clear about the pedagogical objectives that the case seeks to cover. In this way, it will be easier to focus on what is important when you have to decide what information should appear in the case and what should not, thus trying to be as concise and concrete as possible.
“And of course, have a dilemma or challenge that opens the whole discussion, with a protagonist with whom the participant can identify.”
Final word…
Rocío and Enrique concluded: “Cases are a very powerful tool for learning because they allow you to analyse situations that may have already happened to you as a participant or that will surely happen to you sooner or later.
“Nowadays, when you can access a lot of knowledge in any format, the case method is the only one that allows you to work on critical thinking, one of the few skills that always appears in the top attributes for the work of the future.”
