Why Do Consumers Buy Counterfeit Luxury Brands?

This research investigates why consumers buy counterfeit luxury brands. The authors find that consumers’ are more likely to buy a counterfeit brand when their luxury brand attitudes serve a social-adjustive function and that moral beliefs about counterfeiting affect counterfeit purchases only when luxury brand attitudes serve a value-expressive function. The authors also demonstrate that the primary function served by luxury brand attitudes is not merely a consumer characteristic but can also be influenced by elements of the marketing mix (e.g., product characteristics and advertisements), which suggests that marketers can influence people’s reactions to counterfeit brands through specific marketing mix actions.

Citation:

Keith Wilcox, Hyeong Min Kim, and Sankar Sen (2008) ,"Why Do Consumers Buy Counterfeit Luxury Brands?", in LA - Latin American Advances in Consumer Research Volume 2, eds. Claudia R. Acevedo, Jose Mauro C. Hernandez, and Tina M. Lowrey, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 176-177.