ABSTRACT The swift advancement of fresh food e‐commerce has heightened market competitiveness, compelling enterprises to pursue distinct advantages via service enhancements and model innovation. Nonetheless, current research has not comprehensively demonstrated how value innovation in fresh food e‐commerce affects consumer purchase intention via the mediating role of perceived value and the moderating role of consumer innovativeness. Based on survey data from 838 fresh food customers in Shanghai, this study explores how value innovation in fresh food e‐commerce influences consumer purchase intention, addressing a gap in current research. The results show that (1) value innovation in fresh food e‐commerce increases consumer purchase intention; (2) perceived value plays an mediating role in connecting fresh food e‐commerce value innovation and purchase intention; and (3) consumer innovativeness moderates how perceived risks relate to purchase intention, but it does not significantly moderate the relationship between perceived benefits, perceived costs, and purchase intention. This study enhances the comprehension of the mechanisms underlying value innovation in fresh food e‐commerce, presents a novel perspective for its theoretical advancement, and furnishes practical suggestions for optimizing marketing strategies and improving customer engagement on platforms.
Wu et al. (Thu,) studied this question.