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Case Study

Sustainable agribusiness investment (A): Breaking new ground at AxialPar

By Paul Strebel, Ulrich Steger and Aileen Ionescu-Somers

13 pages

June 2006

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Reference: IMD-2-0112

AxialPar is an innovative investment company with a single investor (Pierre Landolt) interested in focusing on agribusiness that is sustainable from an environmental and social standpoint. In spite of the passion and energy that Landolt and the staff of AxialPar have put into the projects funded by AxialPar, there have been many difficulties involved in rendering the businesses profitable. Some of these factors are related to the fact that Brazil is still very much a developing country, with the infrastructure and poverty problems that a developing country environment implies. However, neither are the markets prepared for some of the innovative concepts presented by the projects. The main question is how a groundbreaking investment company such as AxialPar could be better structured or positioned in the future in order to assure success? How can the farmers and markets be better prepared to assure the sustainability of organic produce? Indeed, is it feasible at all to be trying to set up such companies in a Brazilian context?

Learning Objective

The case focuses on the challenges that an investment company experiences when trying to ‘jump start’ four start-ups in a developing country and run them based on sound social and environmental criteria. Participants will come to a better understanding of the commercial challenges that such initiatives are up against, particularly in a developing country context. The ideal governance structure for such an initiative will be the main focus of debate around this case study.

Keywords

Agribusiness, Social Responsibility, Corporate Responsibility, Sustainable Development, Corporate Sustainability Management

Settings

Brazil
2001-2004

Type

Field Research

Available Languages

English

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This case study is part of a series

Sustainable agribusiness investment (A): Breaking new ground at AxialPar
Sustainable agribusiness investment (B): Syngenta’s challenge
Sustainable agribusiness investment (C): Landolt’s challenge

This case study is part of a series

Sustainable agribusiness investment (A): Breaking new ground at AxialPar
Sustainable agribusiness investment (B): Syngenta’s challenge
Sustainable agribusiness investment (C): Landolt’s challenge

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Case reference: IMD-2661 ©2025

Summary

Shenzhen Power-Solution (SPS), founded in 2009 in China as an entrepreneurial venture, disrupted traditional lighting markets in African villages with its flagship product, Candles Killer. This solar lamp, priced under $5, replaces hazardous kerosene lamps and has an optimized design (9 components, water-bottle stands). The candles killer solar lamp addresses the critical need for affordable, safe and sustainable lighting for people at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP), a huge market that multinationals struggle to reach. By achieving both low cost and differentiation, SPS created a blue ocean market. The company has made remarkable progress in its mission to provide solar lighting to underserved communities: by 2023, it illuminated over 55 million people across 7.8 million households in 66 countries. Beyond social impact, SPS achieved environmental sustainability at scale, reducing cumulative carbon emissions by 6.7 million tons, the equivalent of planting 368 million evergreen trees. Candles Killer's success led SPS to expand its product line into a solar home system for phone charging and multi-bulb lighting. SPS also introduced Solar Media, a platform with pre-loaded content (medical tips, farming methods, education) to share vital knowledge in remote regions.

Reference IMD-2661

Organization Shenzhen Power-Solution

Industry Energy;Utilities, Electricity Supply;Consumer Goods, Consumer Electronics

Available Languages English

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