Identifying the important attitude of Islamic brands and its effect on buying behavioural intentions among Malaysian Muslims

Abstract

Purpose Multi-national corporations (MNC) are investing in Malaysia to serve Malay Muslims by carrying the tag line “we are Islamic” for their products. Academicians defined it, as “Islamic brand/s”. Islamic brand/s further divided into three subcategories, namely, Islamic brand/s by compliance, Islamic brand/s by the customer and Islamic brand/s by country of origin. This study aims to identify the important aspect of the Islamic brand/s among the Malaysian Muslims, and it identifies, which Islamic brand aspect motivate Malay consumers to buy Islamic brands. Design/methodology/approach The conceptual model takes on in the current study was the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). The data was collected from three states of Malaysia (Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baharu) from 236 Malaysian Muslims through a structured survey instrument. Smart-partial least squares 3 statistical software was used for analyses. Findings Among Malaysian Muslims, the most important attitude is the Islamic brand/s by origin (country of origin) followed by the Islamic brand/s by the customer and Islamic brand/s by compliance. Research limitations/implications The study was conducted in three states of Malaysia, and the results are based on three attitudes of Islamic brands as independent variables and buying behavioural intentions (BI) construct of TPB. Practical implications Current study valuable for local businesses, MNCs, other Islamic and halal institutes. This study put light and give awareness of the positioning of the Islamic brand/s. Plus the intentions of users in selecting Islamic brand/s. Originality/value This research pursues to clarify consumers’ buying BIs in buying Islamic brand/s in Malaysia.