This study investigates Gen Y luxury consumers’ webrooming behavior. A total of 402 usable responses were collected using questionnaire surveys from the millennials in India. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and PROCESS Macro were run to test the hypotheses. The findings show that the link between perceived usefulness of searching online, perceived ease of searching online, and webrooming intention is significantly mediated by attitude toward webrooming. Results also indicate that online risk perception moderates the association of attitude toward webrooming with webrooming intention. The results of this research will help luxury marketers in formulating effective channel strategies to maximize their reach via both offline and online channels. This study provides several contributions to the luxury marketing and retailing literature by examining luxury consumers’ webrooming intention using an integrated Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)–Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) framework.
This paper investigates why and when messages regarding unsustainable luxury products lead to negative word-of-mouth (NWOM) through a focus on the role of guilt, need to warn others and consumers' cultural orientation. Consumers experience guilt in response to messages emphasizing the unsustainable (vs sustainable) nature of luxury products. In turn, guilt triggers a need to warn other consumers, which leads to NWOM about the luxury company. Furthermore, the results suggest that two dimensions of Hofstede's model of national culture – namely individualism/collectivism and masculinity/femininity – moderate the effect of the need to warn others on NWOM.
Unsustainable fashion consumption and wasteful practices have recently garnered attention in practice and academia; however, research in this field is limited. This study is based upon an extensive review of the literature and aims to fill this gap by providing an in-depth understanding of various drivers and actors operating in the closed-loop fashion value chain. The purpose of this study is to develop a framework of transformation from the linear economy (LE) to the circular economy (CE) for the fashion industry based on “transition theory.”
In the last few years, a radical shift has been observed in luxury consumption behavior, particularly in millennials who are increasingly inclined toward sustainability. There has been a tremendous rise in demand for services providing a non?ownership model of consumption. However, hardly any study has focused on exploring the consumption behavior of the millennials for luxury fashion goods in the context of sharing economy. Hence, this research aims to examine the key drivers that affect millennials attitude and purchase intention of luxury fashion on rent
The aim of this study to investigate factors affecting luxury consumers’ webrooming intention using a moderated mediation framework. The study also investigates the mediating effects of perceived hedonic value and perceived utilitarian value and how these mediating effects are moderated by online risk perceptions. Data were collected using offline survey from 374 luxury consumers in India, using systematic sampling. The results indicated that perceived usefulness of online search, need for touch and socialization have significant impact on webrooming intention.
India is one of the most attractive markets for luxury goods across the globe. It is well-known fact that Indian market provides huge growth possibilities for global luxury players but lack of understanding about Indian market may hamper their ability to establish themselves in India. So, far there have been hardly any studies conducted to understand the key factors leading to success of luxury brands in Indian market context. To fulfil this gap, this study aims to develop a conceptual framework that determines key success factors for luxury brands in India. A qualitative research comprising of 18 interviews with Indian luxury experts was conducted to identify key factors for creating value in Indian luxury sector. Based on insights of luxury experts, this paper provides a framework of 5 Cs that can create value, drive luxury consumption, and finally help luxury retailers to achieve success in India. The 5 C framework comprised of Categorization, Communication, Customization, Consisten
Recently, the trend of sharing economy has gained popularity in fashion, particularly among millennials. Few studies in the past have focused on sharing economy in the clothing industry, mainly in the US and European context. However, whether this global phenomenon of sharing economy will work in emerging markets for the luxury fashion industry is still unknown. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to understand the impact of the various key factors viz. economic benefits, fashion involvement, self- pleasing experience, social projection, perceived risk, and past sustainable behavior on luxury consumption behavior in the sharing economy. Self- determination Theory (SDT) perspective was adopted to show what motivates Indian millennials to participate in luxury fashion rental consumption. Probability sampling technique was used to collect data from Indian millennials who aspired to use luxury fashion brands on a sharing basis. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted, followe
India has emerged as one of the strongest economies in the world. Despite the recent global economic crisis, India has sustained its economic growth. India is optimistic about its future growth and development with a new reformist government in power. By 2024, India has been forecasted to become the third largest economy in the world (Worstall, 2014). The strong boom in the Indian economy has propelled the growth in the number of high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) in India. A study by Wealth-X reported that, in the past year, India has seen a striking rise in the number of dollar millionaires from 196,000 to 250,000. It is predicted that by 2018, India will have 437,000 millionaires. With 14,800 multimillionaires residing there presently, India is amongst the top eight countries in the world where one may find the very wealthy (Wealth-X report, 2015). The sharp rise in its ultra-rich population has spurred the demand for luxury goods in India, thereby making the luxury goods’ market on
Demand for luxury brands is increasing at a very fast pace in emerging markets like India. But very few quantitative studies have been conducted to explore the reasons behind this sudden surge in demand. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to understand the impact of beliefs on consumer buying behavior for luxury fashion brands in the Indian context employing theory of planned behavior and to develop a comprehensive understanding regarding motivating factors behind luxury goods consumption.
Luxury fashion industry evolved in France in 19th century (Crane, 1997; and Djelic and Ainamo, 1999). The custom made creations of haute couture houses served small elite segment of the society (Gupta, 2009). Veblen (1899) introduced the term "conspicuous consumption" to represent the elite segment of the society who consumed luxury goods and inherited highest status in the society. However, in the 1990s, numerous new alliances and mergers and acquisitions among firms eventuated. Many privately held and familyowned firms transformed into public companies. Simultaneously, large increase in the demand for luxury goods transpired and therefore marked the onset of "democratization" of luxury industry (Dubois and Laurent, 1995; Vickers and Renand, 2003; Ernst and Young, 2005; and Okonkwo, 2007).
The concepts of ‘luxury’ and ‘sustainability’ are antithetical to each other. However, a paradigm shift is presently witnessed in luxury domain. Lately, sustainability is swiftly becoming a critical issue for both luxury brands as well as society as a whole. This case study focuses on the company—‘Natweave Textile Studio.’ It is a textile company founded by Indian textile designer Subhabrata Sadhu in 2009, with a yearning to conserve the rich heritage of rarest and finest cashmere by using the traditional skills of native Kashmiri artisans. The company specializes in producing high-end and exclusive Pashmina scarves and shawls with focus on entirely pure, handmade, and natural production process. Sadhu sources finest Pashmina fibers from Pashmina goats reared in its natural habitat in Changthang plateau in the Kashmir region. He strongly believes in protecting and preserving the rare art form and providing a platform to the Kashmiri craftsmen—custodians of this ancient skill, to showca
In recent years, there has been a paradigm shift in the luxury realm as consumers are increasingly inclined toward sustainable orientation. Yet, very few studies have been performed in this domain to gain an in-depth understanding about sustainable luxury consumer behavior. This study is based upon an extensive review of literature and aims to fill this gap by classifying various factors pertaining to sustainable luxury purchase intention into four broad categories, namely, culture, self-oriented (personal) values, others-oriented (social) values and economic value. Going further, an integrated conceptual framework based on dual theoretical framework of theory of planned behavior (TPB) and Schwartz’s value theory is proposed in the study to provide a holistic view about the key determinants of sustainable luxury fashion consumption.
India is witnessing a phenomenal growth in the luxury market segment. However, empirical studies in this domain are few and far between. The main objectives of this study are, firstly, to build and empirically test the theoretical framework designed to measure the effect of value perceptions on intention to purchase luxury fashion brands among Indian consumers. Secondly, to determine the role of gender in understanding the relationship between luxury value dimensions and purchase intention. This study employed researcher controlled sampling and questionnaires were administered through the personal interview from actual users of luxury fashion brands. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to test proposed hypotheses using AMOS. The statistical analysis indicated that conspicuous value was the most significant predictor of purchase intention among Indian luxury consumers followed by hedonic value and social value. The results of the study also revealed that gender does not play
Although India is home to the world’s largest millennial population, so far, hardly any studies exist that explain the key drivers leading to the luxury goods consumption among this generational cohort. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to develop and empirically test the conceptual framework designed to measure the relationship between luxury value perceptions and purchase intentions among the young Indian luxury consumers, and, second, to examine the moderating effect of gender in the relationship between luxury value perceptions and purchase intentions.
Doodlage, a fashion and lifestyle brand, was originated in 2012 with a simple notion to create exclusive eco-friendly items, with high-style quotient. Kriti Tula, founder of Doodlage, perceived this idea when she noticed massive stack of textile waste while doing her internship at an export house. The brand was born from her love for planet. She thought of reinventing the rejected fabrics and put them to better use. As she was aware of the fact that fashion industry is a major contributor to textile waste that ends up in landfill, she decided to start upcycling this waste to create sustainable fashion. The concept of upcycling provides Doodlage an opportunity to reprocess waste, recover intrinsic value through recycling, and optimize the end-of-life processes toward zero-waste systems. Doodlage tries its best to minimize its production waste, and whatever is left is reused in making bags and home furnishings. The brand emphasizes on developing sustainable business practices at each sta
Although Generation Y consumers contribute significantly to the luxury market,still there is a limited amount of research conducted to explain their luxury consumption behavior, particularly in context of emerging markets like India. The main objectives of this study are to understand the key factors that affect luxury purchase intentions of Generation Y consumers using the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and to examine the moderating effect of subjective norm on other TPB variables, namely, attitude and perceived behavioral control.
Generation Y consumers are the key drivers for luxury market growth in the future. Yet, very few studies have been performed to understand Gen Y consumers' luxury consumption behavior, mainly in context of emerging markets like India. The main objectives of this study are first, to develop a conceptual framework which integrates the role of key variables that influence Gen Y consumers' purchase intention for luxury goods. Second, to analyze the mediating effect of attitude and subjective norm on the relationship between conspicuous value and luxury purchase intention.
Creating and maintaining a successful luxury brand has many challenges. In emerging markets like India, brands face additional challenges due to the smaller size of the market as well as consumer’s general preference for value over luxury. Based on a qualitative approach, the study aims to empirically develop an analytical framework of the critical success factors (CSFs) for luxury brands keeping in mind the uniqueness of the emerging markets. This study involved semi-structured in-depth interviews with 18 senior managers with varying experience in luxury fashion industry, supported by secondary research such as internal documents and media reports. The study identifies 10 interrelated CSFs, which are categorized into two broad categories, i.e., Core CSFs and Augmentative CSFs. Based on consumer maturity and brand status, four types of consumption patterns (aspirational, conspicuous, experiential, and heritage) for luxury brands are also identified. Managers can use our CSF framework a
Indian luxury market is expected to grow tenfold in the next decade. Young consumers are the key factor driving the growth of Indian luxury market. Yet, hardly any study has been performed to understand young consumers' luxury consumption behaviour in India. Therefore, the main objectives of this study is to examine firstly, the influence of personal and non-personal luxury values on consumers' attitude and subjective norms and secondly, the influence of these variables on consumers' purchase intentions and behaviour towards luxury fashion goods using theory of reasoned action (TRA). Results show that hedonic value is the key predictor of young consumers' attitude towards purchase of luxury fashion goods. In addition, conspicuous value and social value are found to have positive impact on consumers' subjective norms. The findings of this study have important implications for both academicians and practitioners.
Recently, internet has turned out to be the fastest growing channel for luxury sales. Surprisingly, very few studies have focused on understanding the major drivers behind online luxury goods consumption, particularly in the emerging market context. Therefore, the key objectives of this study are to, first, develop a framework to understand factors affecting consumers' intention to purchase luxury fashion goods online. Second, measure the moderating effect of perceived risk and web atmospherics on the relationship between attitude toward buying luxury fashion goods online and online luxury purchase intention. Study findings indicate that perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived enjoyment and price consciousness have a direct as well as an indirect relationship via attitude on online luxury purchase intention. The results also revealed that web atmospherics moderate the relationship between attitude toward buying luxury fashion goods online and online luxury purchase inten
Drawing on goal framing theory, this study aims to investigate consumer values and perceived readiness to engage in secondhand luxury consumption, a form of pro-environmental behavior. Academic literature lacks empirical evidence on secondhand luxury as a form of pro-environmental behavior and Gen Z argued to be the most influential generation driving this market has not been investigated so far. Through an emerging economy context, this study contributes important implications for luxury brands entering the secondhand market, secondhand retailers and scholars about what motivates young consumers and drives purchase decisions while engaging with an otherwise stigmatized market.
Since showrooming has been a key trend among luxury consumers, this study tries to understand the major drivers behind luxury consumers’ showrooming behaviour using a moderated mediation framework. Drawing from Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) Model and Value-Based Adoption Model (VAM), this research aims to bridge this gap in the existing work.
Despite the fact that online is predicted to become the major channel for luxury purchases by 2025, there is scant literature related to online luxury buying behavior, mainly in the context of Generation Y (Gen Y) consumers in emerging societies like India. Therefore, the primary objective of this study is to empirically test the theoretical framework developed to assess the factors influencing luxury consumers' online shopping behavior based on the stimulus-organism-response model and technology acceptance model (TAM).
In the recent past, gamification has been recognized as an effective tool for engaging customers. However, there is limited research to explain luxury consumers' motivations to adopt gamification. This research applies the service-dominant (S-D) logic theory to investigate the association between motivation to adopt gamification, customer engagement, and affective commitment.
Lately, a drastic shift has been observed in demand for luxury goods from ‘ownership’ to ‘usership’. Consumers are re-assessing their priorities, resulting in change in their attitude and behaviour towards luxury. Yet, very few studies have been conducted in this domain to gain an in-depth understanding about what drives and prevents consumers to consume luxury goods on a collaborative basis. This study is based upon extensive review of literature and tries to fill this gap by classifying various factors affecting luxury fashion consumption in collaborative economy into six broad categories, viz., individualistic/collectivistic culture, egoistic (self-oriented) values, altruistic (others’ oriented) values, cost value, identifiable risks and personal norms. This study also explores the moderating role of identifiable risks and personal norms in consumer’s intention to participate in collaborative luxury fashion consumption (CLFC). Going further, an integrated conceptual framework is pro
The purpose of the current study is to examine why luxury consumers webroom. The study further examines the intervening effects of social norms, age, and gender. Findings suggest that perceived usefulness of searching online, sales-staff assistance, socialization, and need for touch have significant positive effect on attitude toward webrooming. The moderation effect findings suggest that subjective norm significantly moderates the association between attitude toward webrooming and webrooming intention. Practically, the findings are likely to aid luxury marketers in designing effective channel strategies to maximize their reach via both offline and online channel.
In the last few years, there has been an increase in a tendency towards the sharing economy. The purpose of this study is to identify the role of conspicuous value, attitude towards luxury goods in the sharing economy, subjective norm, and past sustainable behavior in influencing purchase intention for luxury fashion goods in the sharing economy. Extant literature on luxury goods established the relationship between conspicuous value and purchase intention. However, it is still unexplored whether the same relationship will hold in luxury rental consumption or not. Thus, this study fills gaps in the marketing literature by studying the direct, mediating, and moderating relationship among these variables in the context of luxury sharing economy consumption. The findings of the study revealed that both attitude and subjective norm mediate the relationship between conspicuous value and purchase intention. Further, past sustainable behavior was found to moderate the relationship between con
This study aims to examine the effect of consumers’ gaming motivations on customer–brand engagement and the potential of this engagement to develop self–brand connections and affective commitment toward luxury brands. Second, it explores if the setup game mechanics and self-congruity with the brand can strengthen the effectiveness of motivation to engage with gamification on customer–brand engagement and self-brand connection.
This study explores reasons for and against secondhand luxury (SHL) fashion adoption among young consumers in an emerging nation, India. As a trend, SHL has witnessed tremendous growth in the past few years, but scholarly interest remains scant. While most existing studies have only focused on the motivational drivers, this study offers in-depth insights into the growing SHL literature by drawing attention to the enablers and equally important inhibitors by applying the novel Behavioral Reasoning Theory. It also intends to enhance practitioner knowledge in understanding a culturally diverse market and developing strategies relevant to a new set of consumers. The study calls for SHL retailers to sensitize young consumers in India about the sustainability aspect of SHL consumption, which is currently less appreciated.
Luxury markets have seen monumental growth in the last decade. Emerging markets have turned to be the major source of this growth. Lot of economic instability, social unrest, global currency wars and threat of terrorist attacks was witnessed in 2015, yet global luxury goods industry remains highly optimistic. Indian luxury market remains firm and maintains its position as the fastest-growing luxury market (Aroche, 2015). It is estimated to reach US$ 14 billion by the end of 2016 from US $8.5 billion in 2013 growing at the rate of 25% p.a. (Assocham, 2014).
Recently, the thought processes of consumers are evolving universally, making them reflective of the negative ecological footprints owing to excessive fashion consumption at a personal level. Consequently, they are progressively thinking about accessing alternative, sustainable modes of consuming fashion. Furthermore, this transition is being witnessed across the generations and is not confined to any one generation. The current study pertains to the recent shift of “Generation X” towards the rental phenomenon. However, Gen X is considered less experimental, more conservative, and therefore less lucrative. To this end, the current study investigates the barriers to Gen X's adoption of fashion rental and suggests motivations to promote it. It uses an interpretive qualitative research paradigm to collect data from 32 Gen X fashion consumers, analyses it using a thematic analysis approach, and uses the theory of psychological ownership and the Hofstede cultural dimensions as an underpinni