An Export Performance Model for the Industry of Flower and Ornamental Plants in Mazandaran Province by Using the Grounded Theory Approach

Despite the fact that Mazandaran province is one of the important hubs of flower and plant production in Iran, has a high potential for flower and plant production and is adjacent to most consumer countries in the world (e.g., Russia), it does not play a significant role in the field of export. So, this research aimed to design an export development model for the industry of ornamental plants and flowers in Mazandaran province using a qualitative approach. Data required were collected with in-depth semi-structured interviews. The interviewees included 16 experts and activists of the export of ornamental plants and flowers in Mazandaran province who were selected by the snowball method based on the theoretical saturation index. The data were analyzed and the conclusions were drawn by the grounded theory approach which provides a limited theory. The data analysis was performed in three stages: open, axial, and selective coding. The paradigmatic model derived from the findings of the research includes causal conditions, strategies and consequences, intervening conditions, and contextual conditions. The analysis of the data showed that the model for the development of the export of ornamental plants and flowers from Mazandaran province is composed of 19 factors including export hydrocephalus, technology, and experience and commitment as causal conditions, management capabilities, export terminal, targeted modeling (leading countries benchmark), networking, processing, competitive strategies, export marketing and branding, and hard and soft infrastructures as strategies, business diplomacy and sustainable economic growth as consequences of implementation of strategies, business environment and formalization-centralization of export structure as contextual conditions, and finally global red ocean and global evolution as intervening conditions. How they relate to each other is presented in the final model.