Craving vs. Compulsion for Luxury Goods?: Trends and Patterns of Conspicuous Consumption Behavior in Asian Culture

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to examine why people are motivated to engage in luxury consumption, particularly in Asian countries. Purchases of global brands are increasingly popular among affluent society not only in Western nations, but also in other parts of the world. Global brands are normally associated with luxury brands from all categories of consumption goods such as cosmetics, handbags, electronic goods, cell phones and accessories, and watches among others. Previous studies have found that Western countries have clearly stated several key factors for consumers to purchase such luxury brands. Consumers in Asian markets are expected to engage in conspicuous consumption behavior to purchase global brands due to market demands and increasing income levels. Yet, such understanding is still much limited in the context of Asian consumers. Our work addresses this issue.