Luxury Retail Research Articles

AR atmospherics and virtual social presence impacts on customer experience and customer engagement behaviours

PurposeFew studies have examined technology-enhanced atmospheres for strengthening customer experience and brand engagement in physical store settings. This study builds on the social presence theory to test for the first time the moderating effects of virtual social presence on customer responses, through AR adoption in-store. Our study aims to understand the impact of technology-enhanced in-store atmospherics (TEISAs) with emphasis on AR elements and virtual social presence on customer experience and engagement behaviours (CEBs) in luxury settings.Design/methodology/approachHypotheses are developed and a survey using 566 responses were collected using Qualtrics. T-tests, two-way ANOVA and structural equation modelling were used for analysis of CEBs. Moreover, using PLS-SEM, we test whether virtual social presence moderates this relationship in a cross-country context; Britain and China, two of the largest economies for luxury growth.FindingsThe findings demonstrate that TEISAs have a positive impact on emotion and perceived value, with virtual social presence moderating this relationship. The cross-cultural comparison results show that the impact of TEISAs on emotion and perceived value is stronger for British than for Chinese millennials.Originality/valueOur model is the first to incorporate technology into various store atmospherics, to employ virtual social presence as a new moderator, and to provide empirical evidence on the effects of AR on customer experience and CEBs in the real-time luxury retail environment. This study is also the first to consider virtual social presence on social media as a moderating variable.

From runway to homepage: Synthesizing luxury brand strategies in digital scape

The increasing preference of consumers to purchase luxury online has caught the attention of luxury retailers over time. It has encouraged retailers to formulate strategies that boost their online revenue. Owing to the importance of the topic, this article presents a detailed and critical review of brand strategies that induce luxury consumption using digital platforms. Using the PRISMA approach and following the systematic review process, the authors have identified five major brand strategies that can help them strengthen their digital game. The article presents a conceptual framework that will help luxury retailers understand the current state of online brand strategies, draw inferences from them, and use them to achieve their future objectives. Academically, the article includes a synthesis of publication trends, methodologies, prominent journals, theories, constructs, and directions for future research using the TCM approach. This will help future researchers gain meaningful insights into the extant work and help them discover gaps to advance the online luxury literature. Further, the paper highlights the industrial implications of the identified brand strategies in the Asian market, as luxury brands have shown an increasing interest in this growing market.

How a Swiss luxury retailer implements process mining to improve data-driven customer excellence

In today’s digital transformation era, process mining has emerged as a crucial technology, playing an integral part in the digital strategies of many organizations. Despite its significance, implementing process mining to leverage data-driven decision-making and boosting process efficiency presents notable challenges for such companies. This case study delves into the journey of the fictitious Swiss luxury retailer Elysian as they utilize process mining to derive data-driven insights on process inefficiencies and bottlenecks to increase their customer excellence for online retail procurement. The case highlights the capabilities of process mining for organizations. It is among the first to offer students hands-on guidance on process discovery, conformance, and enhancement using real-world data. Students take the role of Lisa Dister, Head of procurement in the business unit home care, who urgently requires improving process transparency after an unsatisfying internal audit result. This immersive experience helps students understand the application of process mining in high-volume data scenarios and equips them with skills in data literacy. Moreover, students are challenged to suggest recommendations for long-term process optimization and reflect on the effectiveness of process mining for tackling procurement issues.

The role of augmented reality app attributes and customer-based brand equity on consumer behavioral responses: an S-O-R framework perspective

PurposeAugmented reality (AR) provides consumers with added value by allowing them to experience products via mobile devices. An increasing number of brands have adopted AR apps, but little is known about how consumers respond to AR app attributes or what motivates them to use luxury brand AR apps. To fill this gap, this study aims to use the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model to examine how AR app attributes (i.e. interactivity and virtuality) and customer-based brand equity (CBBE) (i.e. brand awareness and brand image) of luxury brands affect consumers’ behavioral intention to share about the app and use it for future purchases.Design/methodology/approachParticipants were recruited using a quantitative online survey (n = 214) and asked to use the Gucci mobile AR app before completing the survey. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze the data. All measures were adapted from existing literature.FindingsFindings indicate that AR app attributes lead to positive consumer experience, in turn, creating behavioral intention, while CBBE partially leads to positive consumer perceptions. Post hoc analysis confirms that consumers’ perceived values mediate the relationship between AR app attributes and consumers’ attitudes toward a luxury brand AR app.Originality/valueTheoretically, this study expands the application of the S-O-R model along with brand equity to AR adoption and luxury retail by demonstrating the intricate mechanism of how AR app attributes and CBBE promote consumers’ behavioral intentions toward luxury brand AR apps. Practitioners may create more interactive and immersive virtual product demonstrations and focus on establishing the overall brand image.

The pursuit of splendour: a recipe of psychological motivations driving conspicuous luxury consumption

PurposeThe purpose of the present study is to examine and validate a research model encompassing power distance belief, need for uniqueness, self-monitoring, self-construal, social adjustive attitude, and value-expressive attitude as the causal antecedents for conspicuous luxury consumption.Design/methodology/approachSurvey data was collected from a large consumer panel. The study applied a combinatory partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) approach in examining the research hypotheses and proposition.FindingsThe results indicated the effects of power distance belief, need for uniqueness, self-monitoring, and self-construal on social adjustive attitude and value-expressive attitude, which in turn determine conspicuous luxury consumption. In addition, the fsQCA findings revealed three configurations that articulate the complex interactions of the causal antecedents.Originality/valueThis study enriches the literature by providing a comprehensive understanding of the psychological motivation factors that drive conspicuous luxury consumption and assists luxury retailers in developing targeted strategies to appeal to consumers.

From personal to corporate social responsibility: (de)individuation in luxury retailing

PurposeThe New York Times has suggested replacing sustainable fashion with responsible fashion, emphasizing the need for joint efforts by both individual consumers and retailers to take responsibility for their own decisions and actions. This study seeks to investigate the mechanism that activates individuals' personal social responsibility (PSR) and its association with their perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR) from a responsible luxury fashion retailer.Design/methodology/approachAn online experiment was conducted with a nationwide US sample of luxury consumers who were randomly assigned to either individuation or deindividuation groups. Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) and multi-group SEM were employed to test the hypotheses.FindingsIndividuals' universalism positively affected PSR, which then enhanced their recognition of a responsible luxury retailer’s CSR and led to a greater willingness to pay a premium. More importantly, the positive effect of universalism on PSR was strengthened when consumers’ unique individuality, rather than their deindividuated state, was emphasized. Moreover, the moderating effect of individuation was indirectly transmitted through PSR to perceived CSR, hence reinforcing the relationship between PSR and CSR.Originality/valueThis study significantly advances existing scholarship on sustainable luxury retailing and adds rigor to deindividuation theory by demonstrating the central role of PSR and the moderating effect of individuation in enhancing recognition of a luxury fashion retailer’s CSR commitments. The findings provide luxury fashion retailers with communication and marketing strategies that highlight consumers' unique individuality to more effectively activate their sense of personal responsibility and thereby increase their recognition of the retailer’s CSR.

Phygital luxury experiences. A correspondence analysis on retail technologies

AbstractBeliefs play a prominent role in consumer attitudes toward technology. Hence, the interplay between affective and cognitive perceptions results in approach or avoidance behaviours. This study examines how phygital interactive in‐store technologies are perceived in the specific context of luxury retail by providing a holistic picture of the characteristics consumers link to technological applications. Employing correspondence analysis, we highlight the contribution of the affective and cognitive dimensions of beliefs to technology evaluation, both in positive and negative terms. By differentiating between respondents who had already tried the technology and those who had not, the findings reveal how negative bias, derived from a lack of experience, results in negative evaluations; while previous usage of the technology positively impacts technology assessment. The results provide an outline of a valuable customer in‐store experience enriched by phygital devices, showing how technology's distinct features attract consumers, and how these perceptions can be leveraged by the retailer to enhance the retail experience.

Scrutinizing the effects of pop-up stores’ retailscape on young Chinese tourists’ emotion and patronage intention

PurposeThis study aims to understand how retailscape of pop-up stores could influence young Chinese tourists’ emotional response and their subsequent shopping intention in the context of luxury retailing.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative approach was chosen. Building on the theoretical framework of the stimulus–organism–response (S–O–R) theory, a pop-up store retailscape behavior model was developed to explore the effect of retailscape on young Chinese tourists’ emotional response and patronage intention in a luxury retail setting. In total, 226 structured questionnaires were collected onsite.FindingsThe multiple regression analysis reveals that a luxury pop-up store’s retailscape has a positive influence on young Chinese tourists’ emotional response, but it only has a partial influence on their patronage intention. In addition, the result suggests that young Chinese tourists’ emotional response positively influences their patronage intention in luxury pop-up stores.Practical implicationsThe study reveals how retailscape influences behavior among the younger generation, and the results provide important references for the luxury retailers in future design and management of pop-up stores so as to attract and retain the interest of the younger generation.Originality/valueThis study puts retailscape effect under scrutiny in the context of luxury pop-up stores which attract young Chinese tourists, who are regarded as one of the major patrons supporting exclusive retail brands in the world. The stimuli element in the S–O–R model is, thus, reexamined in the context of luxury pop-up stores.

Exploring Shopper Psychographic Characteristics From a Human Ecosystem Perspective: A Proposed Typology of Millennial Luxury Consumers

An enhanced understanding of millennial luxury consumers is needed for luxury retailers to develop loyalty strategies and foster business success. Guided by the human ecosystem framework, the objective of this research was to classify millennial luxury consumers into a shopper typology based on shopper psychographic characteristics to provide an understanding of their shopping motivations and behaviors regarding luxury goods. Two studies were conducted. Semistructured interviews of millennial luxury consumers in Study 1, analyzed through interpretive analysis, resulted in 11 major themes or shopper psychographic characteristics. An online survey to a larger sample of millennial luxury consumers in Study 2 was then employed. Reliability and validity testing confirmed the 11 psychographic characteristics and latent profile analyses revealed a four-class shopper typology. Findings provide retail industry executives with in-depth information on customer profiles which includes shopping and product preferences, motivations, and customer expectations that was previously absent in the literature.

Young Customer Responses to Service Robots vs. Humans in Luxury Retail: A Multidisciplinary Approach

Luxury retailers are increasingly considering the introduction of service robots in their stores to enhance the value proposition and reshape the dynamics of both the service encounter and the customer experience. Although the literature recognizes the social presence of robots in service encounters, little empirical research compares humans and service robots related to luxury. In addition, further research is needed to investigate the emotional responses of young customers, like Generation Z, to a technology-infused servicescape and to explore the value of service robots as a social presence in luxury stores. A 2×2 mixed methods experimental design was developed to test the research hypotheses. The study was conducted in a laboratory with 116 participants randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: approaching vs. non-approaching behavior with a service robot or a human sales assistant. Self-reports and neurophysiological responses (skin conductance) were collected to measure their responses during the service encounter. The results show that a human or a service robot approaching the customer can lead to greater positive affective states and emotional responses than a human or a service robot not approaching. In addition, we found that young customers do not differentiate between human sales assistants and service robots. However, the customers’ level of immersion in the flow, understanding of the message, and happiness are higher with a human sales assistant. Finally, the absence of any interaction (non-approaching) during the service encounter leads to a negative reaction to a human sales assistant compared to a service robot, showing the importance of personalized and deep connections in luxury service.

How a Swiss Luxury Retailer Implements Process Mining to Improve Data-Driven Customer Excellence

How a Swiss Luxury Retailer Implements Process Mining to Improve Data-Driven Customer Excellence

Identifying factors influencing purchase intention of sustainable luxury retailing products

PurposeThis study investigated the antecedents influencing purchase intentions of sustainable luxury products using the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected from 513 participants through surveys about recent purchases of sustainable luxury products. As part of this study, the authors visited luxury retail outlets in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai, and AMOS version 23 was used to analyze the data.FindingsConsumer trust and attitude (organism) are positively influenced by utilitarian, hedonic, epistemic, social and self-image (SEI) stimuli. Consumer trust and attitude (organism) have a significant impact on sustainable luxury purchase intention (response). In addition, escapism (ESC) moderated the organism–response relationship.Practical implicationsAs a result of the findings regarding utilitarian, hedonistic, epistemic, social and SI aspects of luxury brands, practitioners can develop sustainable marketing strategies that will promote luxury brands.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the existing literature by examining the moderating role of entertainment (ENT) and ESC in the S-O-R model in terms of antecedents influencing the purchase intention of sustainable luxury products. Furthermore, this new model contributes by providing a deeper understanding of sustainable luxury shoppers' intentions in India through analyzing purchase intentions for sustainable luxury products.

From Tradition to Technology: Exploring the Evolution of Luxury Retailing and the Digital Frontier

In the luxury fashion industry, it was previously believed that participating in e-commerce, especially selling through multi-channel, was only suitable for brands in lower and middle range. However, this perception has been changed by digital transformation happening in all industries in the recent years. Through a circumspect analysis on existing literatures and modifications that have been made among the luxury retailers, this research seeks to provide a comprehensive review of challenges being faced by the physical stores, prevailing situation of digital luxury marketing, and future opportunities in the virtual environment. So far, luxury brands have built various distribution channels to integrate into the rapid growing digital environment. In order to resolve the “Internet Dilemma”, luxury retailers established a new marketing strategy, which is called Omnichannel marketing. Omnichannel marketing aims to integrate online and offline as a coherent integrity, combining advantages from both channels, such as convenient information gathering on the web and in-store exclusive customer experience. The robust technological developments also indicate future pathways in the digital world for luxury brands, including utilizing big-data analysis to offer hyper-personalized marketing and deployments of high-technologies.

AI in the Luxury In-Store Atmospherics

Although the application of new-age technologies accelerated the orientation towards the online retailing journey in the pandemic context, the role of the physical store is still central in luxury shopping. The literature highlighted the growing impact of new-age technologies and Artificial Intelligence on consumer shopping experiences and retailing. Multiple factors are influencing luxury fashion and certainly technology changes are impacting clients’ behaviours and expectations. This study explores the critical impact of AI on in-store atmospherics, influencing the consumer in-store shopping experience. Cross-fertilising the DAST (Design, Ambient, Social and Trialability) model framing consumers’ experience with the growing literature on AI in retailing, this research empirically explores Chinese millennial consumers, a segment of tech-savvy consumers with a significant impact on global luxury markets. Based on 72 interviews with consumers and 12 interviews with luxury retail experts, this research elicits and discusses a set of factors framing the transversal role of AI in in-store atmospherics, framing its impact on the customer shopping experience. The study concludes by opening future research streams and critical appraisal of AI’s transformational impacts on luxury retailing.

Unpacking the influence of anthropomorphism and stereotypes on consumer attitude towards luxury brand

PurposeThis study aims to understand consumers' attitudes towards luxury products based on the stereotype content model, brand anthropomorphism and the psychological ownership theory.Design/methodology/approachThe authors collected data from Indian consumers using the online questionnaire survey method. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS AMOS version 24 and PROCESS SPSS macro, using both mediation and moderated mediation models.FindingsThe findings suggest that increasing brand anthropomorphism and stereotypes enhance consumers' attitudes through a significant mediating role of brand credibility. The results also show that consumers' psychological ownership positively moderates the mediating path via brand credibility from low to high levels.Originality/valueIn doing so, this study contributes to the literature on luxury retail by examining how brand stereotypes and brand anthropomorphism impact consumers' attitudes towards luxury brands through the mediating role of brand credibility and the moderating role of psychological ownership. In the process, the study provides an understanding of Indian consumers' attitudes in the context of the Indian luxury retail sector.

Sustainable Luxury and Consumer Purchase Intention: A Systematic Literature Review

In the last decade, the relationship between sustainable luxury and consumer purchase intention has been gradually noticed by researchers. However, a systematic review of the literature on this topic has not been conducted. The purpose of this study was to collect literature and analyze the current state of research related to sustainable luxury and consumer purchase intention. Based on the Scopus and Web of Science database, this systematic review used a multistep process to ensure the traceability and reliability of the findings. A content analysis shows that sustainable luxury can be presented through four perspectives (raw materials, recycling and reproduction, social media and advertising (AD) strategies, and corporate social responsibility (CSR) and brand promise) in contrast with common luxury goods. In addition to consumer purchase intention, consumer attitude and word-of-mouth (WoM) advertisements were also evaluated as dependent variables. The relationship between the effect of sustainable luxury and consumer purchase intention is multifaceted, and five types of factors are summarized. The results of this review indicate that the related epistemology has been strongly advanced, and luxury brands should approach the topic of manufacturing and retail sustainability on a case-by-case basis and measure whether it translates into better purchasing behavior. The practical implications for luxury retail are discussed.

Understanding consumer repurchase intentions towards luxury retail brands: Evidence from an emerging market

Prior studies have mostly concentrated on consumers' intentions to purchase luxury brands, and research on luxury consumers' repurchase intentions is limited. In this study, we identify the drivers of luxury repurchase intention using the Value-based Adoption Model and Expectation-Confirmation theory. Further, we examine the moderating role of gender and public vs private consumption patterns on the luxury brands' value dimensions. The study employed a mixed-methods approach comprising qualitative essays and focus group discussions (N = 62) followed by primary surveys of luxury consumers (N = 501). The data for the empirical study was collected through a questionnaire designed using established scales. Using structural equation modeling, the conceptual model was evaluated. The hypotheses developed concerning interplay of VAM and ECT were accepted. Three main predictors of the repurchase intention of luxury brands were perceived value, relationship quality and satisfaction. Also, most of the hypothesized perceived value dimensions (except sensory value and perceived cognitive effort) significantly influenced the overall perceived value. However, the moderating role of (gender and consumption value) was not observed in the relationship between the consumption value dimension and perceived value.

How COVID-19 Is Facilitating the Digital Transformation of Luxury Retailing Industry in ChinaTaking Louis Vuitton as an Example

In recent years, COVID-19 poses an undeniable threat to the world economy. There is an increase in the global unemployment rate, supply chain disruptions, and business failures in several industries, especially in China. Faced with this difficulty, an increasing number of organizations are transforming their platforms from physical stores to e-commerce and online platforms, hence boosting their digitalization penetration. This paper explores how COVID-19 stimulates the digital transformation of the luxury retailing industry in China, using Louis Vuitton as an example. The purpose of this paper is to determine the possible pattern around all luxury retailers to see if digitalization is better and more sustainable for their commercial operations. This paper will employ literature analysis as its methodology. This paper reveals that the digital change surrounding the luxury brand is not solely a result of COVID-19, while COVID-19 does speed this transformation, and that social media platforms also play a significant role in China.

‘The American Look’: The transformation of women’s sportswear in 1930s and 1940s America

This article will suggest that the American sportswear style reflects the unique historical and cultural influences on American dress from the birth of the new democratic nation in the eighteenth century to the dominance of New York City’s ready-to-wear industry in the 1950s. Focusing on the key decades of the 1930s and 1940s, this article will explore the marketing campaign of Dorothy Shaver, vice-president of the luxury retailer Lord & Taylor, who in 1932 coined the phrase ‘the American Look’ to promote American fashion designers’ collections. The legacy of sportswear designer Claire McCardell, arguably the best known of the New York-based ready-to-wear designers will be examined. McCardell’s combination of nostalgic American prairie style with the use of everyday workwear fabrics of cotton plaid, denim, wool and jersey created an unpretentious casual American style based on comfort, ease and flexibility, which is reflected today in the contemporary American ready-to-wear market. The article will maintain that the promotion of the American Look via photographic shoots, magazines, advertisements, visual merchandising, exhibition and film influenced the style and taste of dress that the female American body ought to ‘fit into’. This style, it will be argued, encouraged the development of a cultural memory of American dress by establishing a material link between national identity and clothing.

Enhancing quality requirements management in retailing industry: The role of Quality Function Deployment

PurposeSmall retail stores in the luxury market face significant challenges due to fluctuations in market demand. This task turns challenging as it requires effectively coordinating and translating customer needs into specific requirements that align with retail goals and available resources. However, limited empirical research exists investigating how managers can address service value and quality attributes in small retail stores. This article aims to bridge this gap by investigating the role of quality function deployment (QFD) in improving market and quality requirements management in small retail stores.Design/methodology/approachBased on the case study, a customer survey was initially conducted to gather information on critical characteristics valued in the luxury retail segment. QFD was used to assist the company in identifying and prioritizing key quality attributes to meet customer requirements effectively.Findings The findings demonstrate that implementing QFD in small luxury retail stores empowers managers to identify previously neglected product and service quality aspects. The article shows that QFD informs organizational adaptations that align with the demands of the retail market, leading to an improved ability to meet customer expectations and enhance customer value through the development of enhanced products and services. The study showcases the efficacy of the tested methodology in effectively capturing and prioritizing both tangible and intangible customer needs in retail.Practical implications Findings offer valuable insights to retail managers of small luxury stores, providing actionable market-oriented strategies. By implementing the recommended practices, managers can improve the store’s competitiveness and better cater to the customer base.Originality/value This study contributes to bridging persistent knowledge gaps by addressing the unique context of small luxury retail stores and introducing the application of QFD in this setting. The insights gained from this research are relevant to both retailing and quality management literature. Considering the growing prevalence of transformations in the retail industry, the study provides practical implications for retail managers in effectively navigating these changes.