Exploring the Drivers and Moderators of Business Model Innovation: A Case Study of the Dairy Industry

Sammanfattning: The competitive landscape of the dairy industry is changing. In the western markets, the consumption of some traditional dairy products is declining, while plant-based dairy alternatives are seeing double-digit growth. Several factors have contributed to this change, which act as both drivers and moderators of the business model innovation efforts of dairy incumbent firms. The purpose of this thesis was to explore and create a comprehension of these factors. This was done through a qualitative case study of the European and North American markets of the dairy industry and included three sub-cases consisting of dairy incumbent firms. By reviewing existing literature on the notion of business models and business model innovation, a preliminary theoretical framework was formulated, which further guided the data analysis. Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected from secondary sources, however, a qualitative semi-structured interview was also conducted. The results of the analysis indicate that several factors, stemming from the macro-, industry-, and internal environments of dairy incumbent firms, are driving and moderating their business model innovation efforts. This further indicates that firms need to understand the environment in which they operate in order to create aligned efforts of business model innovation.