A Comparison of Indonesian and Dutch Generation-Z Preference Shift from Global Fashion Brands to Locals after Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The covid-19 pandemic which outbroke four years ago has shifted how people live, work, and shop. Governments restrictions have made people develop new habits that can be done from home. Fashion industry as one of the most influential industries in Indonesia, as well as something that was always being traded offline, becomes one of the impacted areas. The less bodily experience of fashion online shopping and more cost-conscious consumers made this industry experienced a dip especially in 2019 and 2020. However, preliminary findings suggest that this condition benefits local fashion businesses which have been operating online since before this problem emerged. Therefore, this study is conducted to investigate the post-covid-19 pandemic preferences of generation-Z consumers regarding local and global fashion brands, focusing on a cross-cultural comparison between Indonesia and the Netherlands. The research aims to understand the factors influencing Generation-Z’s fashion brand preferences and explore potential differences between the two countries. This study is done using quantitative method with online questionnaires tool distributed to a sample of generation-Z consumers from two universities in Indonesia and Netherlands. Then, the data is processed using partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Results show that generation-Z of both countries prefer local fashion brands compared to global ones. The difference between the two countries is Indonesian participants emphasize the importance of brands interactivity, while the impact of it to Dutch participants is less significant. The study’s implications highlight the evolving Generation-Z consumer behavior after the pandemic especially the shift of preference to local fashion brands. Understanding these preferences can assist fashion business owners and marketing teams in tailoring their strategies to cater the current needs and values of Generation-Z consumers. Furthermore, the cross-cultural comparison sheds light for fashion business owners who are planning to expand their markets to developed countries with similar characteristics as Netherlands.