Luxury consumption and the moderating role of attitude toward counterfeits: The case of an emerging market

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to investigate the moderating role of positive attitude toward economic benefit of counterfeit products in the relationship between luxury value perception and purchase intention of luxury brands among Iranian consumers. Data were collected using questionnaires, which were completed by 386 customers at various shopping malls. Structural equation modeling was used to test the direct hypotheses in Amos v.18, and moderated regression analysis to test the moderating hypothesis in SPSS v.19. The results indicate that financial and social value are important drivers of luxury value perception in shaping the purchase intention of consumers, while functional value is not involved in this regard. Moreover, attitude toward counterfeits, as a moderator, reduces the positive effect of luxury value perception on purchase intention. This research provides important insights not only with regard to market entry decision-making but also to develop marketing strategies for positioning a luxury brand in an Asian emerging market. The findings could be potentially generalized to other developing countries in the Middle East with analogous socioeconomic and cultural circumstances. While several studies have been conducted regarding counterfeiting and luxury brand consumption, this is an initial investigation on the moderating role of positive attitude toward economic benefits of counterfeits in the relationship between luxury value perception and purchase intention in the context of an emerging market. This research facilitates further investigations in this regard.