INDEX: Lifestyle Retail Fixtures and Merchandising

INDEX:
Lifestyle Retail Fixtures
and Merchandising

Lifestyle Retail Fixtures and Merchandising

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SCROLL DOWN FOR PHOTOS AND LINKS…
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This Lifestyle Retail Fixtures and Merchandising index page aggregates links
to all post and photos of retail merchandising, display, and outfitting
as well as deep Background courtesy of Wikipedia.

BACKSTORY: A lifestyle brand is a company that markets its products or services to embody the interests, attitudes, and opinions of a group or a culture. Lifestyle brands seek to inspire, guide, and motivate people, with the goal of their products contributing to the definition of the consumer’s way of life. They often operate off an ideology, hoping to attract a relatively high number of people and ultimately becoming a recognised social phenomenon.^[1]

A lifestyle brand is an ideology created by a particular organisation’s brand (Schmitt, 2012). It pursues to embody the identities, interests, lifestyles, attitudes and opinions of an individual, group or culture.^[2] An organisation achieves a lifestyle brand by focusing on evoking an emotional connection with its consumers.^[3] Therefore, organisation can create a desire for a consumer to be affiliated with a particular group or brand.^[4] Furthermore, the consumer will believe that their identity will be reinforced if they publicly associate themselves with a particular lifestyle brand.^[3] For example, portraying self-expression using a brand on social media.^[2]

As individuals have different identities based on their personal experiences, choices or background (including social class, ethnicity or culture), an organisation must understand to whom it directs its brand.^[2] By operating off a lifestyle brand ideology, an organisation’s ultimate goal is to become a recognised social phenomenon.^[4]

Lifestyle brands operate off the idea that each individual has an identity based on their choices, experiences, and background (e.g. ethnicity, social class, subculture, nationality, etc.). Lifestyle brands focus on evoking emotional connections between a consumer and that consumer’s desire to affiliate him or herself with a group. Some recent contributions have defined lifestyle brands as one of the possible ways of consumer self-expression: customers believe that their identity will be reinforced or supplemented if they publicly associate themselves with a lifestyle brand or other symbol-intensive brands.^[5]

Factors that influence consumer decision process

It is evident that consumers in our modern world continually face multiple decisions with regard to product choice due to many competing products, such aspects as a products attributes have been shown to be involved in the consumer decision process (Catalin & Andreea, 2014). A number of factors can be identified that affect a consumer’s choice of product brand which influences their lifestyle. Consumers are known to choose a brand that is acceptable to their self-image that they are trying to portray. This has left companies having to re-establish and position their products to ensure they meet the lifestyle a consumer is trying to obtain. They have an opportunity to refine their target market which would limit competition due to a reduced number in consumers who would be attracted to their specific brand because of the way they might perceive their lifestyle.

Consumers have a tendency to evaluate product attributes as opposed to a case by case assessment (Ainslie and Rosii, 2005). There is the need for brands to be understood and how they can be influential with regard to consumer’s decision making considerations. Three processes are identified as being intertwined in choice behaviour. These are psychological, sociological and economic processes (Keller, 2008). Within these three processes lifestyle of the consumer also becomes intertwined with consumers tending to choose a brand they feel is congruent with their self- image, their identity – who they feel they are and what they connect with the most. Vyncke (2002) suggests that a consumer’s value’s, goals and vision for their life along with aesthetic style are all reflective of individual lifestyle.

Consumer self-expression

Consumers use brands to express their identity (Chernev, Hamilton & Gal, 2011). The need for self-expression can be related to the need for acceptance within society and the societal view on brands and how different brands portray income or wealth. An advantage to lifestyle brands is that consumers can express their identity in a number of ways. This is a dominating factor that would lead on to the consumer adopting a certain lifestyle. Brands allow for customers to express themselves and portray their identity and lifestyle (Keller, 2008). Lifestyle brands in particular, portray a type of meaning that allows a particular reference group to attach themselves based on their lifestyle, values or beliefs (Escalas, & Bettman, 2005).

Perceived Brand Value

If a consumer loves fashion this will have a positive effect on his/her willingness to pay for a luxury, top end brand. In order for a lifestyle brand to be successful and dominate market share it needs to enhance customers experiences and provide more than just a product. Consumers are more willing and likely to purchase a brand that establishes itself as to value and satisfaction. Brand value is defined as comparing focal brands with unbranded products that have had the same level/ same ways of marketing to consumers as well as adopting the same product attributes (Yoo and Donthu, 2001).

Luxurious brands target those that have an extreme lifestyle. Price is never a factor. Three categories are identified as measuring brand value: brand loyalty, perceived value and brand awareness/ association. Consumers associate themselves with luxury fashion brands to portray their certain lifestyle and separate them from the rest (Vigneron & Johnson, 2004). Social value is an aspect that relates to consumers desire to obtain luxury brands that they hope will offer them a symbolic part of a group or culture. There are emotional factors that are connected to the consumption of a luxury brand, for example those that bring pleasure or excitement (Choi & Kim 2003; Kim et al., 2010; Vigerneron & Johnson, 2004). Consumers who purchase luxury brands tend to have a strong social function within their social class.

Retail Brands

Lifestyle retail brands is the way in which retailers refine their products or services to interest lifestyles in specific market segments (Helman & Chernatony, 1999). Examples of lifestyle retail brands include Laura Ashley, GAP and Benneton. These retailers offer a distinct set of values to consumers. They are known for these. Furthermore, there has been a development in retailing over time. A number of retailers have come up with their own brand strategies. Therefore, a number of retailers are seen as lifestyle retail brands because they are targeting consumers who adopt their brand due to a lifestyle they want to obtain (Helman & Chernatony, 1999). (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

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