The Sustainability of Small Industries Thriving across Generation in Rural Areas

Anne Charina (), Ganjar Kurnia and Asep Mulyana
Additional contact information
Anne Charina: Agribusiness Study Program, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang 45363, Indonesia
Ganjar Kurnia: Agribusiness Study Program, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang 45363, Indonesia
Asep Mulyana: Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang 45363, Indonesia

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 16, 1-20

Abstract: This study investigates the sustainability level of small industries that have persevered for up to three generations in rural areas of Indonesia, addressing the significant issue of high failure rates among small industries. Utilizing the Triple Bottom Line framework, this study examined the economic, social, and environmental performance of four small industries that have thrived for multiple generations in Indonesia. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions (FGDs), and secondary company data. Thematic analysis principles using N-Vivo 12 software were applied to analyze qualitative data, while the RAP 2016 software version R was used for assessing the sustainability index and status. The research findings revealed that the sustainability status of small industries that survived for up to three generations in rural areas was predominantly unsustainable. Economic performance exhibited variability, some falling into the less sustainable category, while social and environmental performances were deemed moderately sustainable. The practical implications of the findings are as follows: the level of competition, government policy, and market access are the most sensitive factors that should be considered to improve economic performance. Meanwhile, small industries must maintain and enhance their social and environmental performance to ensure stability. In addition, the theoretical implication of this finding suggests that the concept of “sustainability” cannot solely be represented by the company’s longevity. Long-lasting small industries may not necessarily be economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable.

Keywords: small industries; business performance; longevity; sustainability; rural areas (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/16/12339/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/16/12339/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:16:p:12339-:d:1216682

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().