Purpose Innovation and sustainability are two important pillars required to achieve competitive advantages. However, it is still unknown how the combined impact of both factors affects business performance. To address this gap, the present work incorporates sustainability-oriented service innovation (SOSI) as a variable to expand the research field in the service sector. The purpose of this study is to analyze value co-creation as an antecedent and innovation and business performance as consequents of SOSI and evaluate the moderating role of sector type, concretely hotels and retail business. Design/methodology/approach To contrast the proposed hypotheses, a quantitative approach was used, and the data were collected from 450 Spanish hotel and retail establishment managers. The data were then analyzed by using partial least squares structural equation modeling to validate the measures and to test the proposed model. Findings The results of this study highlight the important role that SOSI, driven by the positive influence of co-creation of value, plays in innovation performance. Moreover, innovation performance emerges as a driver of business financial and nonfinancial results, which, in turn, play an important role in their financial results. Finally, the findings support the existence of significant differences across sector activity in terms of the effects of value co-creation on SOSI and the impact of nonfinancial results on financial results. Originality/value This research contributes to progress in conceptualizing SOSI and provides empirical evidence that identifies the links between its antecedents and consequences.
Moise et al. (2026) studied this question.