Status brands: examining the effects of non‐product‐related brand associations on status and conspicuous consumption

In seeking to expand our understanding of brands and their impact on consumer behaviour, assesses the relationship between brand associations, which contribute to consumption behaviour. A self‐administered questionnaire was developed and administered to a non‐probabilistic convenience sample of 315 young consumers. The findings of this research indicate that the status‐conscious market is more likely to be affected by the symbolic characteristics of a brand; feelings aroused by the brand; and by the degree of congruency between the brand‐user’s self‐image and the brand’s image itself. Results also indicate that the higher the symbolic characteristics, the stronger the positive feelings, and the greater the congruency between the consumer and brand image, the greater the likelihood of the brand being perceived as possessing high status elements. The suspicion that status‐laden brands would be chosen for status consumption and conspicuous consumption was also confirmed. These findings broaden our understanding of status‐conscious consumers and their behaviour towards brands.