Slowing and closing product and related material loops in a circular economy (CE) requires circular service operations such as take‐back, repair, and recycling. However, it remains open whether these are coordinated by OEMs, retailers, or third‐party loop operators (e.g., refurbishers). Literature rooted in the classic make‐or‐buy concept proposes four generic coordination mechanisms and related value creation architectures: vertical integration, network, outsourcing, or doing nothing (laissez‐faire). For each of these existing architectures, we conducted an embedded case study in the domain of smartphones with the aim to better understand how central coordinators align with actors in the value chain to offer voluntary circular service operations. Based on the above coordination mechanisms, our central contribution is the development of a typology of circular value creation architectures (CVCAs) and its elaboration regarding circular coordination, loop configuration, and ambition levels. We find that firms following slowing strategies (i.e., repair, reuse, and remanufacturing) pursue higher degrees of vertical integration than those following closing strategies (i.e., recycling) because of the specificity of the assets involved and their greater strategic relevance. The typology also shows that higher degrees of vertical integration enable higher degrees of loop closure (i.e., from open to closed loops) and better feedbacks into product design. Furthermore, we differentiate the understanding on third‐party actors by distinguishing between independent and autonomous loop operators. Overall, we strengthen the actor perspective in product circularity literature by clarifying the actor set, their interrelationships, and how they form value creation architectures.

中文翻译：

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循环价值创造架构：建立，结盟，购买或自由放任

在循环经济（CE）中减慢和关闭产品及相关物料循环需要循环服务操作，例如回收，维修和回收。但是，无论是由OEM，零售商还是第三方环路运营商（例如翻新商）进行协调，这仍然是开放的。扎根于经典的“制造或购买”概念的文献提出了四种通用的协调机制和相关的价值创造架构：垂直整合，网络，外包或无所作为（自由放任）。对于每种现有架构，我们在智能手机领域进行了嵌入式案例研究，目的是更好地了解中央协调员如何与价值链中的参与者保持一致，以提供自愿的循环服务运营。基于上述协调机制，我们的主要贡献是开发了循环价值创造架构（CVCA）的类型，并详细阐述了循环协调，循环配置和雄心壮志。我们发现，由于所涉资产的特殊性和更大的战略相关性，采用缓慢策略（即维修，再利用和再制造）的公司比采用封闭策略（即回收）的公司追求更高的纵向整合程度。该类型学还表明，较高的垂直集成度可以实现较高程度的闭环（例如，从开环到闭环），并可以更好地反馈到产品设计中。此外，我们通过区分独立和自治循环运算符来区分对第三方参与者的理解。总体，