Circular Business Models: A Multiple Case Study in Manufacturing Companies in Northern Brazil

Abstract

Research on Circular Business Models (CBM) supports companies in changing the business paradigm from linear to circular. The field of research on business models for CE is in a phase of maturation and consolidation, as several publications on the CBM topic have grown exponentially in the databases. However, little research has been carried out in Brazil to investigate how companies are applying EC principles in their business practices, what business models are adopted, and the value achieved. Thus, this study aims to contribute to knowledge about the adoption of CBM in Brazil, identifying the models adopted and which enabling elements are inducing and facilitating the transition. This research is exploratory, based on qualitative data, having as a research method the study of multiple cases carried out in five large manufacturing companies installed in an industrial park in northern Brazil, which are introducing the principles of CE in the form of doing business and achieving economic and environmental results. The survey results show that the companies surveyed are diversifying their business model towards models that slow down or close the production loop in a hybrid way (linear and circular), revealing that the creation of ecological value has been greater than the economic value. The role of several enabling elements was observed, but innovation is one of the main enablers for circularity and the creation of more sustainable organizations.