IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i17p12949-d1227027.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Analyzing the Impact of COVID-19 on Business Performance through the Case-Study of a Green Italian Start-Up

Author

Listed:
  • Chiara Iacovacci

    (Independent Researcher, 00183 Roma, Italy)

  • Myriam Caratù

    (Faculty of Economics, Università degli Studi Internazionali di Roma, 00147 Roma, Italy)

  • Giuseppe Addamo

    (VAIA, Via Puisle, 23 Borgo Valsugana, 38051 Trento, Italy)

  • Vincenzo Grasso

    (Treatwell IT, Via Carlo Farini, 41, 20159 Milano, Italy)

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic, which began in December 2019 and spread globally, has triggered numerous studies examining its profound effects on societies and economies. This paper investigates the impact of the pandemic crisis on people’s environmental awareness and sustainable consumption in the Italian market and tests several hypotheses related to this impact on the performance of green start-ups. Hypothesis 1 suggests that COVID-19 has increased environmental awareness, positively influencing green consumption behavior. Hypothesis 1bis focuses on businesses selling green products, proposing that they benefited from COVID-19. Hypothesis 2 posits that COVID-19 had a positive impact on online sales, while Hypothesis 3 suggests it damaged businesses based on a product-oriented PSS (Product-Service Systems). The study centers around a mixed method: a and an in-depth interview (qualitative research) with one of VAIA’s founders-a green Italian start-up taken as a case study for this research and quantitative research on the Italian consumers, carried out through an internet-based questionnaire with 706 participants Findings reveal significant shifts in environmental awareness and sustainable consumption patterns due to the pandemic: participants reported heightened awareness of environmental issues and an increased inclination toward sustainable consumption, influenced by reflections on human health-environment interdependence, lockdown-induced lifestyle changes, and a collective sense of responsibility. The study demonstrates as well that a green start-up can experience positive outcomes during the pandemic: this elicits insights that can inform businesses, policymakers, and practitioners in the sustainability sector, enabling them to adapt and capitalize on emerging consumer preferences.

Suggested Citation

  • Chiara Iacovacci & Myriam Caratù & Giuseppe Addamo & Vincenzo Grasso, 2023. "Analyzing the Impact of COVID-19 on Business Performance through the Case-Study of a Green Italian Start-Up," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-25, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:17:p:12949-:d:1227027
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/17/12949/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/17/12949/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Xixiang Sun & Weihuan Su & Xiaodong Guo & Ziyuan Tian, 2021. "The Impact of Awe Induced by COVID-19 Pandemic on Green Consumption Behavior in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-14, January.
    2. Lee Cronbach, 1951. "Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests," Psychometrika, Springer;The Psychometric Society, vol. 16(3), pages 297-334, September.
    3. Lavinia Denisia Cuc & Corina Pelau & Silviu-Gabriel Szentesi & Grigorie Sanda, 2022. "The Impact of Green Marketing on the Consumers’ Intention to Buy Green Products in the Context of the Green Deal," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 24(60), pages 330-330, April.
    4. Ali Saleh Alshebami, 2023. "Green Innovation, Self-Efficacy, Entrepreneurial Orientation and Economic Performance: Interactions among Saudi Small Enterprises," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-18, January.
    5. Paolo Esposito & Valerio Brescia & Chiara Fantauzzi & Rocco Frondizi, 2021. "Understanding Social Impact and Value Creation in Hybrid Organizations: The Case of Italian Civil Service," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-26, April.
    6. Myriam Caratù & Valerio Brescia & Ilaria Pigliautile & Paolo Biancone, 2023. "Assessing Energy Communities’ Awareness on Social Media with a Content and Sentiment Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-28, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Paolo Esposito & Zubair Ahmad & Vincenzo Riso & Noman Mustafa, 2024. "Beyond the business case? Retracing the walk of Corporate social responsibility and financial performance relationship in the Oil and Gas sector," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(3), pages 2211-2224, May.
    2. Francisco Liébana-Cabanillas & Nidhi Singh & Zoran Kalinic & Elena Carvajal-Trujillo, 2021. "Examining the determinants of continuance intention to use and the moderating effect of the gender and age of users of NFC mobile payments: a multi-analytical approach," Information Technology and Management, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 133-161, June.
    3. Yoon, Junghyun & Lee, Hee Yong & Dinwoodie, John, 2015. "Competitiveness of container terminal operating companies in South Korea and the industry–university–government network," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 1-14.
    4. Md. Mominur Rahman & Bilkis Akhter, 2021. "The impact of investment in human capital on bank performance: evidence from Bangladesh," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 7(1), pages 1-13, December.
    5. Usunier, Jean-Claude, 1998. "Oral pleasure and expatriate satisfaction: an empirical approach," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 89-110, February.
    6. Abdul Kadar Muhammad Masum & Md Abul Kalam Azad & Loo-See Beh, 2015. "Determinants of Academics' Job Satisfaction: Empirical Evidence from Private Universities in Bangladesh," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(2), pages 1-15, February.
    7. Amolo Elvis Juma Amolo & Charles Mallans Rambo & Charles Misiko Wafula, 2024. "Hedging Derivatives and Performance of Renewable Energy Projects in Kenya," International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation, International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI), vol. 11(8), pages 619-630, August.
    8. Sharma, Vivek & Bhat, Dada Ab Rouf, 2020. "An empirical study exploring the relationship among human capital innovation, service innovation, competitive advantage and employee productivity in hospitality services," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 9(2), pages 1-14..
    9. Deepak, 2016. "Antecedent Value of Professional Commitment and Job Involvement in Determining Job Satisfaction," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 41(2), pages 154-164, May.
    10. Abernethy, Margaret A. & Vagnoni, Emidia, 2004. "Power, organization design and managerial behaviour," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 29(3-4), pages 207-225.
    11. Marianela Denegri & María Baeza & Natalia Salinas-Oñate & Verónica Peñaloza & Horacio Miranda & Ligia Orellana, 2014. "Materialism in Pedagogy Students in Chile," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 117(2), pages 505-521, June.
    12. Terason Sid, 2021. "Predicting Sports Facility Revisit Intentions Based on Experience and Mediating Effects of Perceived Value," Polish Journal of Sport and Tourism, Sciendo, vol. 28(3), pages 35-41, September.
    13. Amy Roberts & Gregory S. Ching, 2021. "The Ebb and Flow of Study Abroad: A Comparative Analysis of PRC and International Students in Taiwan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-18, May.
    14. Tomislav Letnik & Katja Hanžič & Giuseppe Luppino & Matej Mencinger, 2022. "Impact of Logistics Trends on Freight Transport Development in Urban Areas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-18, December.
    15. Zhihui Wang & Liangzhen Nie & Eila Jeronen & Lihua Xu & Meiai Chen, 2023. "Understanding the Environmentally Sustainable Behavior of Chinese University Students as Tourists: An Integrative Framework," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(4), pages 1-17, February.
    16. William Kelly & Phillips Cutright & David Hittle, 1976. "Comment on charles F. Hohm’s “social security and fertility: An international perspective”," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 13(4), pages 581-586, November.
    17. Ding, David Xin & Hu, Paul Jen-Hwa & Sheng, Olivia R. Liu, 2011. "e-SELFQUAL: A scale for measuring online self-service quality," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 64(5), pages 508-515, May.
    18. Amolo Elvis Juma Amolo, PhD & Charles Mallans Rambo, PhD & Charles Misiko Wafula, PhD, 2021. "Alternative Risk Transfer and Performance of Power Projects in Kenya," International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation, International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI), vol. 8(12), pages 28-35, December.
    19. Robert P. Garrett Jr. & Jeffrey G. Covin, 2015. "Internal Corporate Venture Operations Independence and Performance: A Knowledge–Based Perspective," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(4), pages 763-790, July.
    20. Joungmin Kim & Sun Joo Ryu, 2023. "Enhancing Sustainable Design Thinking Education Efficiency: A Comparative Study of Synchronous Online and Offline Classes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-18, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:17:p:12949-:d:1227027. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.