To the roots of CSR and sustainability: the “proximity” to the territory – The Italian family SMEs’ experience

The study focuses on the importance of entrepreneurial values as well as the relationship with the local environment within which family businesses are profoundly rooted. Using a qualitative approach, an analysis of Italian family SMEs from the Marches region, “cradle” of the small-sized company and craft traditions, allows us to identify the “roots” of good entrepreneurial practices in the ethical-oriented values influenced by family and territory values. Furthermore it enables us to trace the features of a territorial model of socially-responsible and sustainable orientation based on excellent examples of “convivial” family businesses strongly embedded in their territories