How Does Culture Affect The Decision Making Process When Purchasing Luxury Goods?

As American singer-song writer Duncan Sheik once said, “It’s inevitable your environment will influence what you do.” It is not a secret that the environment a person grows up in helps shape their views of the world and how he or she perceives different issues. The United State of America are known as the melting pot. We have many cultures and races all living within the same cities working together peacefully for the most part. To outsiders America is the place to come to achieve the “American Dream”, and it is the place where fresh starts, entrepreneurship, and individualism are highly encouraged. There are freedoms in American that many other people across the world are not as lucky to have.

The consumption of luxury goods in China is mounting sharply. Not only those born to elite families, but also many common people are greedy for luxury brands (China, a Booming

The Middle East is a region centered on Western Asia and Egypt the region has generally been a major center of world affairs as the major religions of Islam and Christianity and Judaism were also established within the region. The region is made up of 18 countries and has vast reserves of crude oil. In modern times the Middle East remains a strategically, economically, politically, culturally and religiously sensitive region.

This behavior brings competitive advantages to the European luxury brands. Moreover, customers in different countries have different purchase behaviors. For instance, some countries’ customers are willing to move away from common recognized brand, because they want to purchase more exclusive products. Furthermore, because of the increasing speed of globalization, people are more likely willing to travel between different countries. These travelers will buy luxury good during their trips. In fact, Chinese tourists contributed over one third of sales in Europe. The luxury goods industry should notice to adjust the actual demand between local people and tourists in Europe

Arab people stem from many different regions including 22 countries: Algeria, Bahrain, the Comoros Islands, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen ("Arab American," 2014). The Arab culture include several ethnicities such as Shias, Sunni, Druze, Ismalites, and Nusayr (Matusiak, 2013). It is important to know Arabs are not a race, but a diverse culture ("Facts about Arabs," 2014). The Arab people are measured as being among the “most educated” population with a higher percentage of college educations than the American population (Matusiak, 2013). Family is important in the Arab culture. Many Arabs live within close proximity of family and have close relationships ("Arab American," 2014).

First of all, it is impossible to talk about groups of people without generalizing. At this point it must be emphasized that there is not just “one” Arab culture or society. The Arab world is full of rich and diverse communities, groups and cultures. Each of the Arab countries has different perspectives. That’s why differences exist not only among coun- tries, but within countries as well. With 22 countries formed, the Arab region has in some parts the same religious, politics and

The Middle East is far from monumental and homogenous. Its differences have been a source of both strength and inspiration. The most visible, most pervasive, and the least recognized aspects of

The rise of brand culture has targeted and influenced the consumer’s thoughts and behavior while purchasing any kind of product in today’s market. There have been numerous studies that clarify how culture does influence the consumption of brands towards consumers. It’s evident that consumers who classify themselves as cultural are likely to be ‘ brand loyal’. By saying this the iPhone plays a strategic role in manipulating consumers into buying the brand. Consumers who love the company behind the iPhone ‘Apple’ have a strong bond with it as the phone itself offers Icloud, IOS, style, design and reliability that no other brand can provide them. That’s one significant reason why consumers purchase and stick to Apple’s products. Not only does it provide trust to its consumers but it also includes upgrading the phones to new versions over years. Once a customer sticks with Apple in general they tend to stay with them for a long time.

The overall sales of luxury goods in the year 2009 is expected to be more than US$150 billion and Asia contributes 10% to it. The concept of luxury is now not confined to only to Europe and US, the Asian subcontinent contributes majorly to it, with India and China as the newly emerging markets. Professor James Twitchell (2002) comments on the democratization of luxury and the changing consumer psychology These new customers for luxury are younger than clients of the old luxe used to be, they are far more numerous, they make their money far sooner, and they are far more flexible in financing and fickle in choice. They do not

In terms of social culture, for one thing, the China consumers are attracted by middle- and high-end products and somehow more attracted by French luxury goods, and they believe that the higher the price, the better the quality (Yuval, Vinay and Cathy, 2011, para7) (Exhibit 1). For another thing, the traditional virtue of thrift is rooted in the mindset of the Chinese, with which some of the rich in China indicate that they would not spend a large sum of money to get a product.

The culture of consumptionism refers to the tendency of people to treat goods which are durable as perishable (Ross & Morgan, 2015). By treating clothing as if it can be used up in the same way as food, the global north consumes 400% more clothing than it did 20 years ago (Ross & Morgan, 2015) because people feel as though clothing consumption is a necessity akin to grocery shopping. Advertising also plays a key role in creating demand by inciting the desire within people to consume. Companies achieve this through advertisements that tie product consumption to the fulfillment of basic human emotional needs (Ross & Morgan, 2015) such as love and social acceptance. Additionally, the low cost of clothing makes people feel as though they are wealthy because they are able to consume more despite the increasing disappearance of the American middleclass (Ross & Morgan, 2015).

There are four main factors that influence the consumer’s behavior; cultural, social, personal, and physiological. These factors determine what the consumer will buy, why they buy an item, and if they will be a return customer.

Second-hand trades have been growing rapidly in the past __ years. The second-hand industry grew at about 7% a year in 2014 and 2015, according to the National Association of Resale Professionals (Narts). Second-hand luxury goods, in particularly, has become a unique segment standing out among the rest of second-hand products. While companies like The Real Real and What Goes Around Comes Around (WGACA) have been successfully enticed U.S. customers to sell and buy second-hand luxury, they might have left another huge group of potential customers behind – international college students from China, who carry a stack of cash to the US each year and share a strong enthusiasm towards luxury brands at a young age like most middle-class Chinese. This study intends to focus on Chinese students studying in the US, their culturally specific motivations and concerns for shopping second-hand luxury so as to provide insights for local second-hand stores to better attract them as potential customers.

Just along the Persian Gulf, lies a vast land full of fundamental principles held true in virtually every efficacious country in the world. Its population of nine million ranks the 93rd largest country in the world (Trading, 2016). The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has evolved from a small, slow business country into one of the top economic powerhouses in the world. A successful country must be able to intertwine a successful economy with the satisfaction of its people. Through culture, an individual can express individual interests, which in turn can help create a successful economy. Culture is the beliefs, arts, and customs that define a country. Its ability to combine small businesses with the overall desire to grow larger will be

Understanding consumer buying behavior entails marketing, relationships, and consumer behavior. Consumer behavior comprises all the consumer decisions and activities connected with the choosing, buying, using and disposing of goods and services. Marketers must pay very close attention to consumer behavior that occurs before the purchase and after the particular product has been used. Studying consumer habits is one of the steps in marketing search and analysis. In addition to other basic principles of consumer buying habits, marketers also need to study the decision and actions of real people. Until recent history the study of consumer behavior was focused on generalized consumer decisions. With