Predicting Indian consumers' purchase intention from Western apparel brands

Abstract

PurposeThe present study compared Indian consumers' attitude (AT) toward and purchase intention (PI) from Western apparel brands, as a function of their Western acculturation (WA), consumer ethnocentrism (CE) in apparel consumption, consumer cosmopolitanism (CC) and country of residence (India vs the USA).Design/methodology/approachThe sample included Indians residing in India and the USA, who were 19 years or older, and visited online or brick-and-mortar apparel stores. An online survey was administered through Amazon Mechanical Turk to collect the data. The data was analyzed through multi-group structural equation modeling.FindingsWA engenders CE among Indian consumers, especially among Indians residing in India. WA and CC positively influence AT. CE did not have a significant negative influence on AT. Although a high CE lowers the PI, a high WA, CC and positive AT can translate into high PI.Research limitations/implicationsThe study did not use an experimental design. Therefore, causal relationships between the research variables could not be explained. Majority of the respondents were male. This might have confounded the findings with potential gendered effects.Practical implicationsWestern apparel brands targeting Indian consumers in India and the USA should focus on projecting their cosmopolitan and pro-Indian image to target this population's cosmopolitan and ethnocentric outlook, thereby enhancing PI.Originality/valueThe study proposed and empirically tested a conceptual model indicating the relationship between some of the important predictors of Indian consumers' PI in the context of Indians residing in the USA and India.