Effect of perceived brand environment-friendliness on Indian consumer attitude and purchase intention

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of perceived brand environment-friendliness (PBE) on brand trust and perceived brand value and the subsequent effect on consumer’s environment friendly (EF) brand attitude and EF brand purchase intention. The research also proposes a novel construct PBE. Design/methodology/approach – The current research involves a pretest to select a perceived EF brand. Then a survey is conducted among 223 Indian consumers. Structural equation modelling is used to analyse the data and to test the proposed integrated model. Findings – The results show that PBE is positively associated with brand trust and perceived brand value. High trust in the EF brand and high consumer perceived brand value lead to favourable attitude towards the brand. Consumers with positive EF brand attitude have significantly higher intention to purchase the brand. Practical implications – The paper provides interesting insights about Indian consumers’ evaluation of EF brands. These useful insights would enable both international and national marketers to develop more focused strategies catering to the Indian consumers. Originality/value – The paper empirically demonstrates that, when Indian consumers perceive a brand as EF, it leads to favourable attitude towards the brand and significantly positive purchase intention. There has been a little research focused on India in this field. So, the current paper offers vital guidelines to international marketers, who are planning to introduce their EF brands to Indian market.