Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access
Open Access Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Restricted Access Subscription Access

An Exploratory Study of Luxury Consumption in Korea: Implications for International Marketers and Advertisers


Affiliations
1 School of Journalism and Mass Communication, The University of Wisconsin at Madison, Madison, Wisconsin., United States
2 Division of Communication Arts, Kwangwoon University, Seoul., Korea, Republic of
3 Temerlin Advertising Institute, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas., United States
     

   Subscribe/Renew Journal


Despite the growth and potential of the luxury market in Korea, there is a very limited amount of empirical knowledge about primary consumption motives. By surveying a sample of 200 non-student consumers from South Korea, the results suggest Korean consumers have three primary consumption motives. Findings reveal that the Conspicuousness motive and the number of visits to local luxury brand stores were positively associated with the volume of luxury goods purchases. In addition, this study revealed that there was a positive association between household monthly income and the expenditure for luxury goods consumption. Finally, this study provided implications for marketing strategists.

Keywords

Luxury Brands Consumption, Consumption Motive, Korea
Subscription Login to verify subscription
User
Notifications
Font Size


  • Appardurai, A. (1990). Disjuncture and Differences in the Global Economy. Global Culture: Nationalism, Globalization and Modernity, edited by M. Featherstone, (pp. 295 - 310). London: Sage Publications.
  • Arnold, M. J. & Reynolds, K. E. (2003). Hedonic Shopping Motivations. Journal of Retailing, 79(2), pp. 77 - 95.
  • Bachmann, G. R., John, D. R. & Rao, A. R. (1993). Children's Susceptibility to Peer Group Purchase Infl uence: An Exploratory Investigation. Advances in Consumer Research, 20(1), pp. 463 - 468.
  • Bain &Company. (2011). Worldwide Lxury Goods Market Poised to Surge 10 Percent in 2011 as Growthin China and Mature Markets Increases, According to Newly-Released 10th edition of Bain & Company's Luxury Goods Worldwide Market Study. Retrieved from http://www.bain.com/about/press/press-releases/ worldwide-luxury-goods-market-poised-to-surge-tenpercent- in-2011.aspx
  • Bain &Company. (2012). Luxury Goods Market Predicted to Grow Six to Seven Percent in 2012, Defying Global Turmoil and Spreading to New Markets, According to Spring Ppdate of Bain & Company's Luxury Goods Worldwide Market Study. Retrieved from http://www. bain.com/offi ces/saopaulo/en_us/press/luxury-goodsmarket- predicted-to-grow-six-to-seven-percent-in- 2012.aspx
  • Bearden, W. O. & Etzel, M. J. (1982). Reference Group Infl uence on Product and Brand Purchase Decisions. The Journal of Consumer Research, 9(2), pp. 183 - 194.
  • Berry, C. J. (1994). The idea of luxury: Cambridge University Press.
  • Chadha, R. & Husband, P. (2006). The Cult of the Luxury Brand: Inside Asia's love affair with Luxury: Nicholas Brealey Intl.
  • Christodoulides, G., Michaelidou, N. & Li, C. H. (2009). Measuring Perceived Brand Luxury: An Evaluation of the BLI Scale. Journal of Brand Management, 16(5), pp. 395 - 405.
  • Chung, Y. I. (2007). South Korea in the Fast Lane: Economic Development and Capital Formation. USA: Oxford University Press.
  • CIA. (2009). Korea. Retrieved February 15, 2009 from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-worldfactbook/ geos/ks.html
  • Cornell, A. (2002). Cult of Luxury: The New Opiate of the Masses. Australian Financial Review, 47.
  • De Beers. (2008). Luxury: Considered. Retrieved from http://www.debeersgroup.com/ImageVault/Images/ id_1545/ImageVaultHandler.aspx
  • Dubois, B., Czellar, S. & Laurent, G. (2005). Consumer Segments Based on Attitudes Toward Luxury: Empirical Evidence from Twenty Countries. Marketing Letters, 16(2), pp. 115 - 128.
  • Dubois, B. & Duquesne, P. (1993). The Market for Luxury Goods: Income Versus Culture. European Journal of Marketing, 27(1), pp. 35 - 44.
  • Dubois, B. & Laurent, G. (1994). Attitudes Toward the Concept of Luxury: An Exploratory Analysis. Asia- Pacifi c Advances in Consumer Research, 1(2), pp. 273 - 278.
  • Dubois, B., Laurent, G. & Czellar, S. (2001). Consumer Rapport to Luxury: Analyzing Complex and Ambivalent Attitudes. Les Cahiers de Recherche.
  • Durvasula, S., Lysonski, S. & Watson, J. (2001). Does Vanity Describe Other Cultures? A Cross Cultural Examination of the Vanity Scale. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 35(1), pp. 180 - 199.
  • Eastman, J. K., Goldsmith, R. E. & Flynn, L. R. (1999). Status Consumption in Consumer Behavior: Scale Development and Validation. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 7, pp. 41 - 52.
  • Economist. (2008). The World in 2008. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/theworldin/forecasts/ COUNTRY_PAGES_2008.pdf
  • Festinger, L. (1954). A Theory of Social Comparison Processes.
  • Hirschman, E. C. & Holbrook, M. B. (1982). Hedonic Consumption: Emerging Concepts, Methods and Propositions. The Journal of Marketing, 46(3), pp. 92 - 101.
  • Kapferer, J. N. (1998). Why are We Seduced by Luxury Brands. Journal of Brand Management, 6(1), pp. 44 - 49.
  • Kapferer, J. N. & Tabatoni, O. (2010). Is the Luxury Industry Really a Financier's Dream: Groupe HEC.
  • Kassarjian, H. H. (1965). Riesman Revisited. The Journal of Marketing, 29(2), pp. 54 - 56.
  • Kim, J. (2007). Luxury Brand's Inferior Service, Maeil Kyungjae. Retrieved from http://news.mk.co.kr/news-Read.php?year=2007&no=99340
  • Kwon, Y. (2005). Market Report: Luxury Market in Korea. Fashion Information and Technology, 2, pp. 82 - 91.
  • Lascu, D. N., & Zinkhan, G. (1999). Consumer conformity: review and applications for marketing theory and practice. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 1-12.
  • Lee, C. & Green, R. T. (1991). Cross-Cultural Examination of the Fishbein Behavioral Intentions Model. Journal of International Business Studies, pp. 289 - 305.
  • Levy, S. J. (1999). Symbols for Sale. Brands, Consumers, Symbols & Research: Sidney J. Levy on Marketing, 203.
  • Mandel, N., Petrova, P. K. & Cialdini, R. B. (2006). Images of Success and the Preference for Luxury Brands. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 16(1), pp. 57.
  • Mason, R. S. (1981). Conspicuous Consumption: St. Martins Press.
  • Netemeyer, R. G., Burton, S. & Lichtenstein, D. R. (1995). Trait Aspects of Vanity: Measurement and Relevance to Consumer Behavior. The Journal of Consumer Research, 21(4), pp. 612 - 626.
  • Nueno, J. L. & Quelch, J. A. (1998). The Mass Marketing of Luxury. Business Horizons, 41(6), pp. 61 - 68.
  • O'Cass, A. & Frost, H. (2002). Status Brands: Examining the Effects of Non-Product-Related Brand Associations on Status and Conspicuous Consumption. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 11(2), pp. 67 - 88.
  • Park, H., Rabolt, N. & Jeon, K. (2008). Purchasing Global Luxury Brands Among Young Korean Consumers. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 12(2), pp. 244 - 259.
  • Park, J. H. (2006). Global Trends and Prospects on Korean Market Towards Premium Outlet. Power Point Slides. Retrieved from
  • Phau, I. & Prendergast, G. (2000). Consuming Luxury Brands: the Relevance of the Rarity Principle. The Journal of Brand Management, 8(2), pp. 122 - 138.
  • Rossiter, J. R. & Percy, L. (1987). Advertising and Promotion Management. McGraw-Hill Book Company.
  • Roux, E. & Floch, J. M. (1996). Gerer L'ingerable: La Contradiction Interne De Toute Maison De Luxe. Décisions Marketing, 9, pp. 15 - 23.
  • Sheth, J. N., Newman, B. I. & Gross, B. L. (1991). Why We Buy What We Buy: A Theory of Consumption Values. Journal of Business Research, 22(2), pp. 159-170.
  • Shin, H. H. (2011). Retailers Target Luxury Sales, Expand Overseas for Growth, The Korea Herald. Retrieved from http://www.koreaherald.com/business/Detail. jsp?newsMLId=20110126000884
  • Stegemann, N. (2006). Unique Brand Extension Challenges for Luxury Brands. Journal of Business Economics Research, 4(10), pp. 57 - 68.
  • Torelli, C. J. (2006). Individuality or Conformity? The Effect of Independent and Interdependent Self- Concepts on Public Judgments. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 16(3), pp. 240 - 248.
  • Veblen, T. (1899). The Theory of the Leisure Class. New York: McMillan Co.
  • Verdict. (2007). Global Luxury Retailing 2007. London: Verdict Research Ltd.
  • Vigneron, F. & Johnson, L. W. (1999). A Review and a Conceptual Framework of Prestige-Seeking Consumer Behavior. Academy of Marketing Science Review, 1(1).
  • Vigneron, F. & Johnson, L. W. (2004). Measuring Perceptions of Brand Luxury. The Journal of Brand Management, 11(6), pp. 484-506.
  • Wang, P. Z. & Waller, D. S. (2006). Measuring Consumer Vanity: A Cross Cultural Validation. Psychology and Marketing, 23(8), pp. 665-687.
  • Wiedmann, K. P., Hennigs, N. & Siebels, A. (2007). Measuring Consumers' Luxury Value Perception: A Cross-Cultural Framework. Academy of Marketing Science Review, 7(7).
  • Wong, N. Y. & Ahuvia, A. C. (1998). Personal Taste and Family Face: Luxury Consumption in Confucian and Western Societies. Psychology and Marketing, 15(5), pp. 423-441.
  • Yoon, Y. & Uysal, M. (2005). An Examination of the Effects of Motivation and Satisfaction on Destination Loyalty: A Structural Model. Tourism Management, 26(1), pp. 45-56.

Abstract Views: 476

PDF Views: 0




  • An Exploratory Study of Luxury Consumption in Korea: Implications for International Marketers and Advertisers

Abstract Views: 476  |  PDF Views: 0

Authors

Min-Woo Kwon
School of Journalism and Mass Communication, The University of Wisconsin at Madison, Madison, Wisconsin., United States
Jonghyuk Lee
Division of Communication Arts, Kwangwoon University, Seoul., Korea, Republic of
Yongjun Sung
Temerlin Advertising Institute, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas., United States
Dave Wilcox
School of Journalism and Mass Communication, The University of Wisconsin at Madison, Madison, Wisconsin., United States

Abstract


Despite the growth and potential of the luxury market in Korea, there is a very limited amount of empirical knowledge about primary consumption motives. By surveying a sample of 200 non-student consumers from South Korea, the results suggest Korean consumers have three primary consumption motives. Findings reveal that the Conspicuousness motive and the number of visits to local luxury brand stores were positively associated with the volume of luxury goods purchases. In addition, this study revealed that there was a positive association between household monthly income and the expenditure for luxury goods consumption. Finally, this study provided implications for marketing strategists.

Keywords


Luxury Brands Consumption, Consumption Motive, Korea

References