Determinants of purchase intention of halal cosmetic products among Generation Y consumers

Purpose Halal cosmetic products are considered as innovation and revolution in the cosmetic industry as they offer high-quality products that follow the halal compliance and meet the strict scientific guidelines. However, halal cosmetic brands are still facing challenges in their positioning and are unable to identify how to encourage customers to buy. Although there is an increasing awareness towards the use of halal cosmetics among the Generation Y consumers, the factors that might stimulus their purchase intention of halal cosmetics is still ambiguous. Besides, there is a lack of well-established study on the role of religious belief as a predictor to Generation Y consumers’ purchase intention. To address the gap, this study aims to propose a model to reveal the distinctive factors that influence the purchase intention of halal cosmetics among Generation Y in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach The population for this study consisted of Generation Y consumers. A closed-ended questionnaire was used for data collection from a sample of 262 respondents. The proposed model was tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling. Findings This study discovered that ingredient safety followed by the halal logo is very important predictor for the purchase intention of halal cosmetic products among Generation Y consumers. Unexpectedly, this study finds that religious belief plays the least important role in purchase intention. Research limitations/implications This study fills the gap in the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) by improving its limitation through considering the unbiased determinant of behaviour i.e. religious belief. Practical implications This study recommends cosmetics companies to position their products based on the importance of safety ingredient with halal logo as unique attributes of the product. It also suggests marketers to understand the right promotion strategy to be used in targeting the right market segment. Originality/value TPB is only based on cognitive processing and it ignores one’s needs/motivations prior to engaging in certain behaviour. Hence, this study looks into religious belief as a means of motivation and one of the important determinants of TPB.