Who is the real fan for luxury? Generational differences in China

Abstract

We investigated whether or not consumers' attitudes toward luxury brands differ between the young and older generations in China, and, if they do differ, how this manifests. In Study 1, data were collected from 210 participants. The results showed that Chinese consumers born after 1979 (young) value luxury brands more than do consumers born before 1979 (older). In Study 2, we conducted a survey with 623 consumers from the angle of perceived luxury value to investigate why such differences exist. The results showed that, for young Chinese consumers, luxury brands evoked a greater sense of perceived luxury value, that is, stronger self-identity, higher status, and more conspicuousness and hedonic value, than did nonluxury brands; the perceived luxury value related significantly to Chinese consumers' purchase intention for luxury brands.