The emotional dimension of the consumption of luxury counterfeit goods: an empirical taxonomy

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a consumer taxonomy based on experienced emotions during non-deceptive counterfeit consumption situations, which could be useful for public policy makers, marketers, and anti-counterfeiting service providers trying to devise strategies so as to inhibit the problem of counterfeit consumption. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on a questionnaire survey/analysis of a sample of 312 randomly selected consumers. Surveys were administrated individually to consumers, through personal contact by the study authors. Data analysis was conducted in three steps: first, descriptive analyses; second, analysis of variance; and third, hierarchical cluster analysis. Findings – Results suggest that during non-deceptive counterfeit consumption situations, consumers experience complex emotions including both positive and negative affect. Furthermore, four different subgroups of consumers experienced relative specific but different emotional reactions. Research limitations/implications – The reported research relied on self-reports and on a sample from Greek consumers. Moreover, data were cross-sectional and alternatives relationships may exist. Future research should be multinational and longitudinal to test the assumptions of the present study and should encompass variables of actual emotions felt during non-deceptive counterfeit consumption situations. Practical implications – Results suggested that four different subgroups of consumers experienced relative specific but different emotional reactions. As a result, the study may help marketers and anti-counterfeiting service providers to establish more refined and more effective marketing strategies. Originality/value – Results of the present research are original and unique and provide new insights for marketing managers in their efforts to decrease counterfeit consumption of their products.