Impact of Lifestyle on Brand Preferences (Genuine versus Counterfeits Smartphones)

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to investigate the lifestyle of Pakistani consumers and their effect on brand preferences (genuine vs counterfeits brands). This is basically an empirical study and a scale was developed to find out the impact of three variables namely; Status consciousness, Price consciousness, and need for uniqueness on brand preferences (genuine vs counterfeits). The questionnaire was distributed among the respondents on the basis of convenience sampling. The results showed that Pakistani consumers having different lifestyles exhibited very different pattern in their purchase behavior regarding counterfeits or genuine brands. For example, consumers with salient “Need for Uniqueness” are found to quiet contingent on consuming products to look different and most likely to prefer counterfeits brands. Findings from this study provide a useful framework for marketers to link their products to various lifestyle groups of Pakistani consumers, thus enhancing their productivity and profitability in the Pakistani market. In order to increase the external validity of results future research can be done using longitudinal designs.