Value co-creation in the beverage and food industry

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to define and describe how consumers may constitute an integral part of small and medium enterprises' (SMEs) value co-creation process in the food and beverage (F&B) industry, and to provide practicable implementation recommendations to firms in the Piedmont region that are important and prominent in this sector. Design/methodology/approach - The research methodology rests on a multiple case study design, applied to three F&B Piedmont SMEs that produce beer, water and starters: Baladin, Lurisia and Galfre. Findings - Results show an increasing awareness by firms of the important role played by customers in value co-creation, though limited to specific roles in the case of SMEs. Research limitations/implications - The research is limited by its exploratory nature, though the findings and conclusions drawn provide a solid foundation for further development and testing on the subject. Practical implications - The case studies' results allow the reader to understand the importance of the increasing awareness of the role played by customers in value co-creation, especially on the WWB, where costs are minimizing. Originality/value - The research's value stems from fact that there are few existing studies on the ways to engage customers in value co-creation. Moreover, these studies, contrary to the present research, are largely theoretical and either have no direct applicability or are limited to a single case.