PurposeTo understand consumer brand engagement processes in luxury fashion brands. Grounded on the brand engagement in self-concept (BESC), this study examines key drivers (i.e. value co-creation, ...social media marketing (SMM) activities, brand self-connection and brand image) of BESC that in turn, enhance brand loyalty and positive word-of-mouth (WOM) in the context of luxury fashion brands.Design/methodology/approachA descriptive survey approach was utilized and data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM).FindingsThe findings reveal that value co-creation, SMM activities and brand self-connection are significantly related to BESC and subsequently, BESC is related to both brand loyalty and positive WOM. However, brand image is not related to BESC and brand loyalty but shows a strong relationship with WOM.Originality/valueThe recognition that consumer experiences add significant value to a brand drives companies to engage with their consumers focusing on the self-concept.
This paper examines the entry strategies of luxury brands in Japan. It uses the global value chain framework and the literature on international business to discuss the entry strategies adopted by ...European brands on the Japanese market during the last seven decades. Two different business models, the dominance model and collaboration model, which are exemplified by French and Italian companies, respectively, are identified in our analysis. The findings of our analysis suggest Italian luxury fashion brands initially used the collaboration model to enter Japan; however, this approach caused conflict over time, which eventually resulted in the adoption of the dominance model and convergence with the French model. This paper demonstrates that when entering markets with a large psychic distance, Western luxury brands are more likely to face the paradox that the dominance model can only be achieved in a specific set of circumstances through a transitional collaboration with local partners. In our conclusions, we detail the managerial implications for practitioners in the luxury sector.
Since the early developments of Web3 and the Metaverse, the fashion industry has been actively launching initiatives, especially through gamification, Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) and shopping ...experience. Up until now the academic literature relating to the implications for fashion brands in a digital fashion marketing context has been scarce. Through a systematic content analysis of 235 articles published between 2021 and 2023 in Vogue Business and The Business of Fashion, this research has focused on the main brands and uses of the Metaverse, as well as their real applications. Through a thorough analysis, this research reveals that the most active fashion sub-industries on the Metaverse are those relating to luxury, sportswear and beauty, with Nike, Gucci and Hermès emerging as the leading brands. Furthermore, when it comes to fashion and the Metaverse, the most popular topics relate to NFTs and gamification, to the point that they are used as synonyms of the Metaverse. This practice creates confusion, not only in terms of the meaning of the term "metaverse", but also regarding its implications for fashion brands. Finally, the study identifies issues that demand further analysis in subsequent academic research regarding the notion of falsity and the Metaverse.
Longitudinal analysis of transparency among fashion brands is the first scholarly effort to investigate sustainability disclosures among the sample of 90 major brands over the period of seven years ...(2017–2023) through the prisms of moral responsibility theory of corporate and supply chain sustainability. Results showed that both luxury and mass-market brands consider corporate transparency as a broad area to practice their perfect duties. Consequently, brands selectively disclose information about their policies, commitments, governance responsibilities, and processes on human rights and environmental issues but disclose significantly less about the ultimate outcomes of their sustainability efforts. Thus, results indicate that supply chain reporting areas represent the area of imperfect duties for the majority of mass-market and luxury brands. Due to the non-existence of strict reporting mandates in the fashion sector, it is up to luxury and mass-market brands' discretion which sustainability indicators they measure and report. Accurate, relevant, and externally audited disclosures are key factors influencing sustainable investment, with positive effects on the industry, market, garment workers, and consumers. Hence, to prevent fashion brands' tendency to indulge in window dressing and greenwashing, this research advocates for policy change and expects local governments to mandate and enforce reporting mandates. Additionally, non-compliance with reporting laws should be both inspected and penalized.
•Conducted a study of 90 fashion brands listed in the FTI index from 2017 to 2023.•Transparency among explored mass-market and luxury fashion brands is increasing.•Information on policies and governance is often disclosed beyond legal requirements.•The lack of supply chain transparency reflects weak enforcement of existing laws.•Findings highlight brands' competitive tendencies to drive faster industry change.
This article introduces a new construct to the field of luxury research, namely eroticism. This construct is, to a limited degree, based on the extant knowledge as very little research seemingly ...exists on the construct which, otherwise, has been "around" for centuries. Next, the construct is operationalized, measured, and empirically validated. A newly developed index, the Brand Erotic Index is employed to rank luxury brands according to their erotic appeal. Interviews with various experts from different fields (luxury executives, marketing academics, fashion and design experts, and psychologists) allow to explore the relationship between eroticism and luxury fashion (and constitute our qualitative study). Next, in our more quantitative study, we analyze survey data from a sample of 167 participants who were asked to evaluate eroticism. In the second quantitative study, a different sample of 217 respondents rated their brand perception about the erotic appeal of nine luxury fashion brands (LFBs). An exploratory factor analysis suggested that that eroticism is a multi-faceted construct consisting of six distinct sub-constructs. Next, we applied multidimensional scaling (based on brand personality and brand style) and found that distinct positionings for most selected LFBs appear to exist. Our findings should help executives and designers of luxury goods or fashion in transforming the power of eroticism into concrete business and artistic propositions. The findings should also ignite future research.
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to conduct a theoretical prediction study exploring the effectiveness of different content marketing strategies in expanding the second-hand market for fashion ...brands, comparing the costs and risks involved in these strategies in practice.
Design/methodology/approach
First, the expert interview method is employed to extract the content marketing strategies of the fashion second-hand market. Then, a descriptive space that is able to identify various fashion brand images is established. Then, experts' perceptions of the relationships between content marketing strategies and fashion brand image dimensions are obtained through a subjective evaluation procedure. Data of semantic evaluation were quantified and analyzed using the fuzzy logic method.
Findings
When fashion brands expand to the second-hand market, they not only need to focus on improving the individual differentiation of products but also give priority to the quality of products and services and the overall customer experience. Exploring the “social impact strategy” will become an important direction for the development of fashion brands in the future.
Originality/value
The research methodology employed herein exhibits a noteworthy degree of novelty. This study introduces a pioneering theoretical prediction approach utilizing fuzzy logic, marking the inaugural exploration of this emerging and captivating dimension within the context of the study. Simultaneously, the study provides comparative results among content marketing strategies for expanding the fashion second-hand market, offering guidance for market expansion.
Research relevant to the creation and development of luxury brands is a growing area in the literature. Offering insight, previous research also contributes evidence of a lack of clarity regarding a ...definition, operationalization, and measurement of brand luxury. This study focuses specifically on this issue within the pre-eminent luxury fashion brands category. Carefully examining brand luxury and the dimensions and relationships underlying the luxury fashion brand, this study develops a conceptual model. Testing across three specific fashion categories the Brand Luxury Model makes important contributions, by clarifying the confusion evident in earlier brand luxury research, supplying evidence about the importance of brand leadership, and helping brand managers and academics by creating a useful framework to depict the luxury fashion brand.
PurposeThere is extensive research where consumer emotions of brand love and brand hate are investigated. However, the studies where a transition in consumer-brand emotions is explored are scant. ...This paper aims to investigate the mediating effect of brand jealousy in the relationship between brand love and brand hate among luxury fashion brand consumers. Also how value expressiveness moderates the relationship between brand hate and negative word of mouth (NWOM) is examined.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on a cross-sectional survey conducted among 273 luxury fashion consumers from Pakistan. The structural equation modeling (SEM) technique is employed to test the proposed hypotheses.FindingsAll the proposed hypotheses are supported. Brand jealousy mediates the relationship between brand love and brand hate. Furthermore, value expressiveness buffers the relationship between brand hate and NWOM.Practical implicationsThe luxury fashion marketers should focus on strengthening the symbolic identity of a luxury fashion brand via advocating its visual elements. Moreover, there is a need to advertise luxury fashion brands as exclusive to individual customers. Finally, some rewards can be offered to consumers to generate positive word of mouth (WOM) about luxury fashion brands.Originality/valueThe study of an emotional transition among luxury brand customers via a mediating role of brand jealousy is a unique theoretical contribution. Moreover, the moderating role of the value-expressiveness function examining the hate-to-NWOM path is also unique to this study.
In the fashion industry, many brands operate under different kinds of franchising systems. In many cases, there is a fixed royalty charged by the franchisor. We observe that some franchisors insist ...on charging the fixed royalty as an upfront payment (before starting the franchising operations), whereas some request the franchisees to pay after the franchising operations have started. We name the first scenario as the upfront payment (URP) plan and the later one as the later payment (LRP) plan. In this paper, based on real world observed franchising arrangements for sustainable fashion brands, we build analytical models to compare the URP plan and the LRP plan from the supply chain finance perspective. We find that the social welfare performance (SWP) under the URP scenario depends on the value of royalty payment, while the SWP under the LRP scenario is not affected by the royalty payment. Moreover, the profit risks of the franchisee, the supply chain and the social welfare all increase with the order quantity. In the extended model, we explore the case when both the fixed royalty and the variable royalty co-exist. Finally, we explore the supply chain coordination problems and generate managerial insights.
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