Purchasing intention of Chinese consumers in the luxury brand markets: the impact of value and affect

Interest in and commitment to luxury brands is ever increasing within the Chinese market place, resulting in a recognisable and growing consumer base. These consumers are both discerning and sophisticated in their purchasing behaviour, and as such, future purchasing intentions and willingness to pay more are clear areas of interest with regard to market performance and its associated sustainability, making brand value and brand affect interesting areas of consideration. This study, by means of a survey of 431 Chinese consumers located in Beijing, has assessed the impact of value and affect on purchase intention and willingness to pay, utilising confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equations modelling (SEM). The findings indicate that functional and social value positively impact on consumers' willingness to pay premium prices, their future purchase intention and their affective attitude towards luxury brands, the former being marginally the more dominant predictor in each case. Attitude is found to further directly influence purchase intention. The symbolic value attached by consumers has some influence on affective attitude, although it does not affect willingness to pay and its direct effect on purchase intention appears counter intuitive.