Circular economy implementation as the cornerstone of green competitive advantage in the wine industry: A PLS-SEM and IPMA Analysis

The present study investigates how the implementation of Circular Economy (CE) practices enhances Green Competitive Advantage (GCA) in the wine industry, examining the mediating influence of Green Shared Vision (GSV) and Green Mindfulness (GM). Despite the strategic relevance of sustainability, empirical evidence remains limited on how cognitive and behavioral dimensions promote the transition toward circular production models in resource-intensive sectors such as wine production. Grounded in the Natural Resource-Based View (NRBV), a structural model was estimated using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) and Importance–Performance Map Analysis (IPMA). Based on survey data from 207 Spanish wineries, the analysis evaluates both direct and mediated relationships and identifies the relative importance and performance of CEI in shaping GCA. The findings demonstrate that CEI acts as the central mechanism connecting cognitive orientation and environmental awareness with competitive outcomes, reinforcing GCA by channeling the influence of GSV and GM through circular practices that exhibit the highest levels of importance and performance. Building on these results, the study offers three main contributions. First, it extends the NRBV by conceptualizing CEI as a dynamic process through which wineries transform environmental knowledge, shared vision, and mindful awareness into sustained competitive advantage. Second, it develops an empirical model that demonstrates how GSV and GM strengthen GCA through the effective implementation of CEI. Third, it offers evidence-based implications for winery managers, underscoring that reinforcing cognitive alignment and proactive environmental awareness enhances the adoption of circular practices.