Store attributes, relationship investment, culture, religiosity and relationship quality

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of store-level attributes, relationship investment, culture and religiosity on relationship quality.Design/methodology/approachTo attain the above objective, data were collected from 350 customers from India and Nigeria. Data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS.FindingsIn the present study, empirical evidence was found for the impact of most of the store’s positioning attributes on perceived relationship investment and relationship quality, in India and Nigeria. Factors like personalization and their impact on relationship investment and quality were not supported in Nigeria. Additionally, religiosity was found to impact relationship quality only in case of Nigerian customers. Cultural differences were also found between consumers of both these countries.Originality/valueThe present study contributes to the theory of consumer behavior and cross-cultural studies by examining the effect of the relationship between various cultural dimensions and religiosity on customer’s commitment with a store, which to the author’s best knowledge is not done before. The present study makes important contribution to the existing literature of relationship quality in three ways: first, by specifying important store-level attributes that impact customer’s perception about relationship investment. By applying these practices, retailers can guide customer’s perception of relationship investment, second, this study confirmed the impact of relationship investment on relationship quality, thus demonstrating the retailers as to why should they invest time and effort in building positive perception about relationship investment, third, this study is first of its kind to have investigated the impact of culture and religiosity on the perception of relationship investment and relationship quality.