Ethnocentrism at the Coffee Shop Industry: A Study of Starbucks in Developing Countries

Jose Andres Areiza-Padilla,Mario Andres Manzi Puertas,Amparo Cervera-Taulet

doi:10.3390/joitmc6040164

Jose Andres Areiza-Padilla, Mario Andres Manzi Puertas + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc6040164

Copy DOI

Abstract

Numerous studies have identified that ethnocentric consumers prefer buying products produced nationally rather than products from overseas. Nevertheless, this study has been focused on big economies, that’s why its application in developing countries is still scarce, especially if we want to know their relationship with a global and foreign brand that operates in these developing countries. On the other hand, this study has been centralized in products, and that is the reason why the studies in hedonic services are also scarce. The objective of this study is to identify the antecedents and consequences of ethnocentrism in hedonic services by applying the variable to a developing country such as Colombia. Considering the cultural and economic importance of Colombian coffee and, regarding a global brand, foreign and hedonic services like Starbucks. This allows the presentation of a theoretical model that forms the basis of an empirical study with a sample of 305 consumers of Starbucks in Bogotá. Via data analysis with Smart PLS 3.0, it was observed that although the Colombian consumer is ethnocentric, they do possess loyalty towards the cited global brand. These results provide us with implications for the management of international businesses as well as with future research pathways.

Highlights

As has been documented in some pieces of research, consumers very often favor the acquisition of nationally produced products above foreign products
It is expected from these brands to be humble, instead of being haughty despite their global importance, Suarez et al [33]. This way, it is needed to go deeper into the concept of global brands in developing countries, with the ethnocentrism of the consumer in hedonic services, the reason why this study presents an academic input to the short amount of existing literature that embraces these topics as a whole
A medium to high level of individualism is observed given that four of the eight items are above 5. This result reflects the observations made by Robles et al [51] that, despite the collectivist character of Colombian society, it is highly oriented towards success achieved in a competitive market

Summary

Introduction

As has been documented in some pieces of research, consumers very often favor the acquisition of nationally produced products above foreign products. In some cases, this is due to the influence that is wielded by the origin of those products on the customer’s intention to buy Baughn et al [1]. According to Vivek et al [7], ethnocentric tendencies are more at the fore when choosing a service provider (SET) in comparison to tendencies in relation to the selection of tangible products. Contrary to the fact that the marks or signals denoting the country of origin are disappearing from goods, the origin of service providers is one of the factors that influence the intention to purchase

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion