AFRICAN GENERATION Y STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF SELECTED MARKETING ACTIVITIES: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF CLOTHING BRANDS

The fashion industry is a significant contributor to both the South African and the global economy. Despite this industry experiencing growth in South Africa, fashion brands and retailers are facing various challenges, including increased competition from the influx of international fashion brands into the market. This, coupled with tighter consumer budgets, intensifies the competition between fashion brands. As a result, effective differentiation, by means of branding, is imperative. A significant part of building a strong brand is the development of unique marketing strategies and a comprehensive understanding of the target market’s needs, as well as the factors influencing their buying behaviour. In South Africa, the African Generation Y cohort (individuals born between 1986 and 2005) is of specific interest to fashion marketers, given the significant size of this market segment and their spending on fashion items. This study sought to determine whether African Generation Y students’ perceptions of selected marketing activities differ based on their favourite clothing brands. This study utilised a self-administered questionnaire to collect data from a convenience sample of 352 African students registered at three South African public higher education institution campuses situated in Gauteng. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The findings indicate that no statistically significant differences are evident between African Generation Y students’ perceptions of the product- and advertising activities of their favourite clothing brands. However, statistically significant differences were found between the students’ perceptions of the pricing and store image activities of their favourite clothing brands. The main findings of this study infer that price is an important indicator of quality and status among this generational cohort, and that the image of the stores through which the fashion brands are distributed should be consistent with this generational cohort’s self-image.

Keywords:

fashion brands, marketing activities, South Africa, African Generation Y students, store brands manufacturer brands,

PDF

___

Amed, I., Berg, A., Brantberg, L. & Hedrich, S. (2016). The State of Fashion. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/the-state-of-fashion. Accessed 2018/04/24.
Bevan-Dye, A.L. (2015). African Generation Y students’ propensity to engage in word-of-mouth communication on Facebook. (In International Conference on Economics and Business Management, Phuket, Thailand: Emirates Research Publishing. p. 8-14).
Bevan-Dye, A.L., Dhurup, M. & Surujlal, J. (2009). Black Generation Y students’ perceptions of national sport celebrity endorsers as role models. African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation and Dance. 172-188.
Bickle, M.C. (2011). Fashion Marketing: Theory, Principles and Practice. New York: Fairchild books.
Cheng, J.M.S., Chen, L.S.L., Lin, J.Y.C. & Wang, E.S.T. (2007). Do consumers perceive differences among national brands, international private labels and local private labels? The case of Taiwan. Journal of Product and Brand Management, 16(6), 368-376.
Chui, C.T.B., Nik, N.S. & Azman, N.F. (2017). Making sense of fashion involvement among Malaysian Gen Y and its implications. Journal of Emerging Economies and Islamic Research, 5(4), 10-17.
Clark, L.A. & Watson, D. (1995). Construct validity: basic issues in objective scale development. Psychological Assessment, 7(3), 309-319.
Comins, L. (2016). Demand for ‘Fast Fashion’ Helps Textile Sector Overcome Slump. http://www.ftwonline.co.za/article/116889/5192/Demand-for-fast-fashionhelps-textile-sector-overcome-slump. Accessed2018/04/24.
Das, M.K. (2011). Brand loyalty and liveragability: an empirical study on some selected brands of soap. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 162- 172.
Douglas, K. (2016). Are South African Fashion Retailers Feeling Pressure from Global Brands? https://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/south-african-fashionretailers-feeling-pressure-global-brands/. Accessed 2017/06/07.
Easey, M. (2009). Fashion Marketing. Oxford: Wiley & Sons. Foscht, T., Schloffer, F., Maloles, C. & Chia, S.L. (2009). Assessing the outcomes of Generation-Y customers’ loyalty. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 27(3), 218-241.
Fratto, G.M., Jones, M.R. & Cassill, N.L. (2006). An investigation of competitive pricing among apparel retailers and brands. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 10(4), 387-404.
Gala, D. & Patil, R.D. (2013). Consumer attitude towards private labels in comparison to national brands. International Journal of Business and Management Invention, 2(5), 12-18.
Grewal, D. & Levy, M. (2008). Marketing. Boston: McGraw-Hill. Gundala, R.R.R. (2010). Retail store image: a study of the Cyprus clothing industry. International Journal of Management and Marketing Research, 3(3), 67- 81.
Hult, G.T.M., Ferrell, O.C. & Pride, W.M. (2014). Marketing. Australia: SouthWestern Cengage Learning. Jackson, T. & Shaw, D. (2009). Mastering Fashion Marketing. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Kincade, D.H. & Gibson, F.Y. (2010). Merchandising of Fashion Products. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall.
Kul, C. (2018). Brand development in global brands and the new target Generation Y (Millennials). Journal of Research in Business, Economics and Management, 10(2), 1844-1850.
Kurtulus, K. & Ertekin, Z.Ö. (2015). Consumers' attitude to and choice of store brands in fashion apparel: Role of gender and shopping style. METU Studies in Development, 42(1), 1-28.
Lamb, C.W., Hair, J.F., McDaniel, C., Boshoff, C., Terblanche, N., Elliott, R. & Klopper, H.B. (2010). Marketing. Cape Town: Oxford.
Lee, M.Y., Kim, Y.K., Pelton, L., Knight, D. & Forney, J. (2008). Factors affecting Mexican college students' purchase intention toward a US apparel brand. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 12(3), 294-307.
Levy, M. & Weitz, B.A. (2012). Retailing Management. 8th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Liu, R.L., Sprott, D.E., Spangenberg, E.R., Czellar, S. & Voss, K.E. (2018). Consumer preference for national vs. private brands: The influence of brand engagement and self-concept threat. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 41, 90-100.
Markert, J. (2004). Demographics of age: generational and cohort confusion. Journal of Current Issues and Research in Advertising, 26(2), 11-25.
Miller, K. (2007). Analysing brand status' impact on brand value. (In Proceedings of the 2007 Australian and New Zealand Marketing Academy Conference (ANZMAC 2007), University of Otago, School of Business. p. 1652-1661).
Moodley, N. (2016). Consumers Under Pressure. http://citypress.news24.com/Personal-Finance/consumers-under-pressure-20161122. Accessed 2018/04/24.
Moore, M. & Fairhurst, A. (2003). Marketing capabilities and firm performance in fashion retailing. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 7(4), 386-397.
Nielsen. (2017). Excellent Growth Potential in South Africa’s R43-Billion Private Label Retail Category. http://www.nielsen.com/za/en/press-room/2017/excellentgrowth-potential-in-south-africas-private-label-retail-category.html. Accessed 2018/04/23.
Oh, H. & Jasper, C.R. (2006). Processing of apparel advertisements: application and extension of elaboration likelihood model. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 24(1), 15-32.
Oyelana, A.A. & Nini, N.C. (2015). The differences in the uses of intensive information search and in-store information between female and male shoppers in South Africa. Journal of Sociology and Social Anthropology, 6(3), 355-364.
PRNewswire (2015). With Increased Competition, Clothing and Apparel Companies Must Go the Extra Mile to Establish Brand Loyalty. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/with-increased-competition-clothingand-apparel-companies-must-go-the-extra-mile-to-establish-brand-loyalty300067601.html. Accessed 2018/04/22.
Rafiq, M. & Ahmed, P.K. (1995). Using the 7Ps as a generic marketing mix. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 13(9), 4-15.
Reisenwitz, T.H. & Iyer, R. (2009). Differences in Generation X and Generation Y: implications for the organization and marketers. Marketing Management Journal, 19(2), 91-103.
Rosenau, J.A. & Wilson, D.L. (2006). Apparel Merchandising: The Line Starts Here. New York: Fairchild Publications.
Schindler, R.M. (2012). Pricing Strategies: A Marketing Approach. London: Sage.
Singh, G. (2017). Fast Fashion Has Changed the Industry and the Economy. https://fee.org/articles/fast-fashion-has-changed-the-industry-and-the-economy/. Accessed2018/04/24.
Sinha, N., Ahuja, V. & Medury, Y. (2011). Corporate blogs and internet marketing–Using consumer knowledge and emotion as strategic variables to develop Consumer engagement. Journal of Database Marketing and Customer Strategy Management, 18(3), 185-199.
Smith, S. (2017). 3 Ways Millennials Are Making A Lasting Impact on the Fashion Industry. http://www.causeartist.com/3-ways-millennials-are-making-alasting-impact-on-the-fashion-industry/. Accessed 2018/06/17.
Soenyoto, F.L. (2015). The impact of brand equity on brand preference and purchase intention in Indonesia’s bicycle industry: a case study of polygon. iBuss Management, 3(2), 99-108.
Statistics South Africa. (2017). Mid-year Population Estimates: 2017, Statistical Release P0302. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0302/P03022017.pdf. Accessed 2018/05/08.
Statistics South Africa. (2017). Retail Trade Sales (Preliminary): December 2017. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P62421/P62421December2017.pdf. Accessed 2018/04/23.
Strydom, J. (2011). Introduction to Marketing. Cape Town: Juta.
Student Village (2017). Student Spend Report 2017: A Brand Me Generation, Buying Experiences. http://www.studentmarketing.co.za/student-spend-report2017-brand-generation-buying-experiences/. Accessed 2017/07/20.
Tangsupwattana, W. & Liu, X. (2017). Symbolic consumption and Generation Y consumers: evidence from Thailand. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 29(5), 917-932.
Taylor, K. (2017). Psychologically Scarred' Millennials are Killing Countless Industries from Napkins to Applebee's - Here are the Businesses They Like the Least. http://nordic.businessinsider.com/millennials-are-killing-list-2017-8. Accessed 2018/06/17.
Thompson, K.H. (2011). Buying Motivations for Apparel: A Comparative Study Between Male and Female Generation Y Consumers. Masters Dissertation. Durban: University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Valaei, N. & Nikhashemi, S.R. (2017). Generation Y consumers’ buying behaviour in fashion apparel industry: a moderation analysis. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal. 21(4), 523-543.
Venter, P. & Jansen van Rensburg, M. (2009). Strategic Marketing: Theory and Application for Competitive Advantage. Cape Town: Oxford.
Wiedmer, T. (2015). Generations do differ: Best practices in leading traditionalists, boomers, and generations X, Y, and Z. The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin: International Journal for Professional Educators. 82(1), 51-58.
Wiid, J. & Diggines, C. (2013). Marketing Research. Cape town: Juta.
Yoo, B., Donthu, N. & Lee, S. (2000). An examination of selected marketing mix elements and brand equity. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 28(2), 195-211.