Understanding the evolution of coopetition among SMEs in a wine cluster: a social capital approach

Research on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has done little to explore the drivers of coopetition. However, this issue is crucial for practitioners in charge of implementing the coopetition process. We address this gap by exploring the drivers of coopetition among SMEs through a longitudinal case study based on 34 interviews along with informal conversations in the French wine cluster of Pic Saint-Loup. We find that the coopetition process: 1) occurs in stages driven by specific environmental factors; 2) is facilitated by the social capital of cluster members, particularly the central member (owner-manager), which is key to the success of each coopetition stage. Our results provide a better understanding of wine cluster development and the inducement of SME coopetition.