The Impact of Brand Country-of-Origin Image on the Formation of Brand Equity in the Sports Apparel Industry

Rasoul Azadi,Hossein Eydi,Bahram Yousefi

doi:10.13189/ujibm.2015.030301

Rasoul Azadi, Hossein Eydi + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.13189/ujibm.2015.030301

Copy DOI

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the conducted effects of the Brand Country-of-Origin Image on The Formation of Brand Equity in the sports apparel industry. Method of this study is descriptive-correlative. The study investigated the effects among the research variables using structural equation model (SEM) with Lisrel software. The population of the study was the whole country's physical education students, alumni, which 805 subjects were selected based on the purposive sampling, using in person, and online questionnaires were collected from Iran. The results showed that the image of the country of origin has a positive relation to the brand equity dimension including brand loyalty, Perceived quality, and brand Awareness/associations, and there is a significant positive relation between brand equity dimensions and brand equity. Therefore, it is recommended to manufacturers in the apparel and sports equipment to try to promote brand's country of origin image to increase brand image in markets by using advertisements and other combined components such as personal sales and public relations.

Highlights

Today, sport and recreation has undergone many changes and from a simple form of games and entertainments transfers to multibillion-dollar industry and one of the largest money making economic segment of this century [1]
Each consumer-based brand equity dimension contributed differently to the relationship according to the product category, while the contribution of both country image dimensions was product category specific
This research which addressed the relationships between brand's country of origin image and brand equity in the sports apparel industry by taking into account the balancing effect of brand equity dimensions proved this fact

Summary

Introduction

Sport and recreation has undergone many changes and from a simple form of games and entertainments transfers to multibillion-dollar industry and one of the largest money making economic segment of this century [1]. In the markets, which products and services, increasingly overlap and adapt, a strong brand can be the only display characteristic that distinguishes a product or service offerings from competitors [4]. To achieve this goal, one of the most popular marketing concepts, which over the past twenty years, from academics and marketers, have been studied, the brand equity. Most of the brand equity research focuses on the marketing mix variables such as advertising, distribution, price and product quality as the contributing factors [5]. Brands from countries that have a favorable image generally find that their brands are readily accepted than those from countries with less favorable image [6]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion