Reimagining transformative services in unregulated markets: conceptualising inclusive service provision in informal and developing country contexts

Purpose Transformative service research (TSR) has predominantly examined regulated markets in developed economies, overlooking unregulated contexts in developing economies where institutional voids and informal systems prevail. This paper aims to address that gap by introducing a framework positioning regulation and country development as boundary conditions shaping service outcomes. It highlights how transformative outcomes emerge not only through top-down compliance but also through bottom-up, community-driven innovations in fragile service ecosystems. Design/methodology/approach A systematic review of 67 peer-reviewed studies was conducted across leading service research journals. The analysis employed a theory-building approach, drawing on institutional theory and development studies, to identify recurring patterns and construct a 2 × 2 matrix positioning transformative service contexts along regulation and country development axes. Findings The review shows that regulation and country development jointly shape conditions under which services achieve transformative outcomes. In developed and regulated contexts, outcomes are enabled through compliance, professional standards and institutional oversight. In unregulated and developing contexts, however, outcomes emerge from bottom-up enablers such as community mobilisation, entrepreneurial adaptation and informal governance. These “Informal Frontiers” demonstrate how resilience, social capital and grassroots innovation compensate for institutional voids, reframing vulnerability as a potential source of agency and inclusion. Practical implications It offers guidance for policymakers, NGOs and service providers to design context-sensitive, inclusive models where institutions are weak, while calling for participatory and ethnographic methods to capture bottom-up innovations. Collectively, the paper advances a globally inclusive TSR agenda. Originality/value This study contributes theoretically by integrating macro-structural conditions into TSR and repositioning informal frontiers as fertile grounds for inclusive service transformation.