Understanding innovativeness and commitment to sustainable service practices

Purpose The purpose of this study is two-fold. First, to examine the relationship between the retailer's innovativeness and sustainability from the customer standpoint. Second, to assess the impact of the retailer's innovativeness and commitment toward sustainability as perceived by the consumer on store image and store equity. Design/methodology/approach To achieve this objective, a theoretical model is proposed based on the literature that is tested through an empirical study conducted on a sample of 510 customers of three grocery retail formats - i.e. hypermarkets, supermarkets and discount stores. Findings The results obtained confirm the hypotheses proposed and, consequently, both innovation and sustainability emerge as key elements in the development of store equity through store image. Originality/value This study allows to draw a set of managerial recommendations for food retailers based on the benefits of investing in innovative processes, that boosted by the implementation of innovative solutions, assist in the development of sustainable practices, thus allowing improvements in store image and store brand equity.