How is value created? – Extending the value concept in the Swedish context

This inductive study elaborates on the value concept and unpacks the process of how value is created in the Swedish food industry by combining the theoretical tool of goal hierarchy with the methods of network analysis. Through real world insights, on how consumers and retail firms act and coordinate their activities to fulfill their roles in consumer value creation, this study proposes a differing perspective that extends the value-in-use concept by identifying four sequential consumer activities. They are (i) reflections about what is important (value) in the specific consumption situation (the focal goal), (ii) the starting point of value creation (selection and application of means), (iii) the process involved in providing and enjoying holistic solutions, and (iv) ultimately its contribution to life fulfillment in the sense that value creation is meaningful. Thus, consumers create value by setting clear differential hierarchical goals that include the identification of resources and consumers’ own capacity before choosing the products and using them. The network analyses also reveal an additional space for supporting value creation: firm to firm interactions which add more resources to providers’ support of consumer value creation. The paper provides new real world insights on how consumers and firms act to fulfill their roles in consumer value creation. This knowledge helps retailers to better identify and manage value creation tools to support their customers in value creation.