Impact of Perceived Brand Name Origin on Fashion Brand’s Perceived Luxury

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to investigate the impact of perceived brand name origin and perceived country of origin (COO) on fashion brand's perceived luxury. Results of exploratory research indicate that perceived brand name origin has a strong impact on perceived luxury, and subsequent willingness to pay a price premium, regardless whether the brand is fictional and only sounds as if originated from a certain country (e.g. "Italian sounding brand") or is a real brand. Results also indicate that by naming fashion brands to have a desirable (e.g. Italian) tone, potential negative impacts of real COO and even a country of manufacture (COM) could be mitigated.