Added value: its nature, roles and sustainability

Much has been written about the strategic importance of added value as a means for achieving competitive advantage, but little attention has been paid to the meaning of the term “added value”. For the concept to realise its purported advantages, a better understanding of added value is crucial. To gain greater insight into the concept we undertook depth interviews with 20 leading‐edge brand experts to explore their views about the nature, roles and sustainability of added value. We conclude that added value is a multidimensional construct, playing diverse roles, and interpreted in different ways by different people. The more sustainable added values are the emotional values.