DEVELOPING A SUSTAINABLE APPROACH FOR SOCIAL ENTERPRISES: A CASE STUDY OF EVARTIS CHILDREN’ S COMPANY

Abstract

This study aimed to: 1) examine the operational components of the social enterprise, using Evartis Children’s Company as a case study, in terms of management, resources and production, marketing and networks, and social and community participation; 2) examine the problems and obstacles arising during operations that affect organizational sustainability; 3) examine sustainability outcomes in the economic, social, and environmental dimensions according to the Triple Bottom Line concept; and 4) propose development approaches for sustainability at the strategic, policy, and collaborative network levels. This study employed a qualitative case study design. Eight key informants were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed using content analysis.
The findings revealed that:1) the operations of the Evartis social enterprise covered four main areas. Its key strength was the use of human capital from children with special needs and their parents to jointly create products through Storytelling and the BCG economic model, with the aim of shifting from donation dependency toward self-reliance; 2) the organization faced major obstacles, including limited financial resources resulting from low sales, limitations in the capabilities and working time of personnel with special needs, delays in the process of obtaining government support, and social prejudice toward the quality of products made by disadvantaged people; 3) in terms of sustainability, Evartis created balance through the Triple Bottom Line, consisting of the environmental dimension, which emphasized Zero Waste and local raw materials; the social dimension, which focused on improving the quality of life and occupational skills of children with special needs; and the economic dimension, which emphasized reinvesting profits; and 4) the development approach toward sustainability, in terms of proactive strategy, emphasized building network partnerships for contract manufacturing and establishing cooperation agreements with government agencies to create permanent distribution channels for premium products, together with the use of CRM systems and AI technology in marketing communication, in order to shift social attitudes from purchasing out of sympathy toward sustainable acceptance of the value of the products.