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PurposeOn a home game weekend of collegiate football, thousands of fan visitors spend their weekend participating in college football games, showing significant potential of sports tourism businesses in the USA. Understanding the original personality of sport tourists and their travel motivation factors is imperative to develop appealing tourist attractions at the destinations of sports team fandoms. The purpose of the study is to examine the relationships among tourists' personality characteristics, their push and pulls motivations, satisfaction with travel experience, and loyalty toward destination and team using structural equation modeling.Design/methodology/approachThe author collected information from a total of 301 sports tourists who had traveled to a college football game within the past year, staying at least one night in a hotel or other lodging place. This study employed PASW Statistics 25.0 and structural equation modeling using LISREL 9.30 for data analyses.FindingsPersonality has a significant relationship with push factors, especially for socialization motivation, and pull factors (i.e. access and affordability, other attractions) had more significant effects on sports tourists' satisfaction than push factors. The findings indicate the key roles for the entertainment motivation in generating tourists' satisfaction and destination loyalty and important roles of destination loyalty in building team loyalty.Originality/valueThe present study provides an approach of sports tourists' travel behaviors and experiences in the sporting event tourism. The outcome of this research can help both sports event organizers and destination marketers to understand the motivations for sports game attendance and to develop marketing strategies and products/services for attracting various types of sports tourists to games.

This study identified and compared factors that directly and indirectly influenced face mask‐wearing in the United States and South Korea during the COVID‐19 pandemic by applying the theory of reasoned action. The overall levels of attitudes and future mask‐wearing behavioral intention were lower for United States than Korean participants (N US = 150 and N South Korea = 150). Differences between the groups were noted in the impact of norms and background characteristics on attitudes and behavioral intention. Messages communicating the importance of wearing masks should be tailored to different cultures. Americans should be encouraged to try wearing masks on their own while Koreans should hear about the social benefits of mask‐wearing.

The craft beer movement has resulted in an increased number of beer festivals. Consequentially, many event organizers, groups, and individuals have sought to capitalize on this movement by hosting inaugural beer festivals. This article proposes a multidimensional conceptualization of perceived value specific to beer festivals incorporated into a model for beer tourist behavior by exploring the staging of an inaugural beer festival hosted in a rural community located in Southeastern New Mexico (USA). A mixed-methods approach incorporates depth interviews and questionnaire data. In-depth interviews with 10 attendees provide supplementary information not obtained from the questionnaire. Sixty attendees completed the questionnaire resulting in a 34% response rate. Researchers performed an exploratory factor analysis and regression analyses to test the models. The multidimensional conceptualization of perceived value and the elements comprising servicescape significantly impact satisfaction. Additionally, satisfaction impacts intentions to purchase and to visit. Furthermore, theoretical and practical implications regarding (1) festival organization, (2) marketing to attendees, and (3) marketing to vendors are discussed to benefit both academicians and event organizers, groups, and individuals hosting inaugural events in general and inaugural beer festivals in particular.

This study relied on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to assess factors that affected event fans’ decisions regarding their intention to attend events by using social network websites. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of event fans’ attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control on their intentions to go to events based on social networking sites (SNSs) marketing. In addition, the researchers examined the impact of perceived enjoyment on event fans’ attitudes towards events pages on SNS.,This study used a quantitative research method and used an online survey distributed on Qualtrics and based on the TPB. Populations in the study were followers of events pages on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The sample was convenience.,By using the partial least square-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), the study found that all the research hypothesis were supported except (H2). While event fans’ attitudes had not a statistically significant impact on their behavioral intentions towards using social media to go to events (H2), perceived enjoyment had a statistically significant impact on event fans’ attitudes towards events pages on SNS (H1). According to the research findings, event fans were influenced by their subjective norms (H3) and perceived behavioral control (H4). These factors significantly influenced event fans’ behavioral intention, which led to their actual behavior (H5).,This study provided evidence supporting that subjective norms and perceived behavioral control were effective in forming intention towards events page, which in turn affected actual behavior, while perceived enjoyment was effective in forming events fan attitudes towards events’ social media pages. This may indicate a need for positive images of the events depicted through social media. In addition, when using social media as a marketing medium for events, event marketers and organizers should understand how other important people’s opinions and perceptions affect the intention and behavior formation. This implies the need to stress the social acceptance of the events, and use family ties, family and other social-units elements of events.,This study provided statistical evidence supporting the applicability of the TPB within the context of event marketing and using social media. This implies a better understanding of the rational decision-making process, along with the social factors affecting the process of forming behavioral intentions and intentions. Furthermore, perceived enjoyment was incorporated within the model. Perceived enjoyment was effective in forming positive attitudes towards events’ social media pages. This highlights the need to provide information and contents in an enjoyable and user-friendly way.,The value of this study is derived from its aim to highlight the importance of social media as an effective marketing tool for events. Moreover, this study sought to contribute to the literature on social media by exploring how social media affected event attendees’ behavior and attitudes and by gauging the impact of social media on the event industry.,本论文以计划行为理论为基础, 旨在评估通过社交网站来影响会展顾客参会意愿的各项因素。本论文基于社交网络营销, 检验其会展顾客态度、主观规范、以及感知行为控制等对于顾客参会意愿的影响因素。此外, 本论文研究人员还检验感知享受如何影响会展顾客对社交网络上会展主页的态度。,本论文采用定量研究方法, 借用在线问卷采样方式, Qualtrics 作为问卷发放平台, 以计划行为理论为基础。本论文的研究人群是在 Facebook、Twitter、和 Instagram 上会展主页的粉丝顾客。本论文采用便捷采样方式。,本论文采用偏最小二乘回归方程（PLS-SEM）统计方法检验研究假设, 并发现, 除 H2 外其他假设论断均成立。会展顾客对于使用社交媒体的态度并未显著影响其参会意愿（H2）, 然而, 感知享受对于会展顾客粉丝社交网站上会展主页有着显著影响（H1）。研究结果表明, 会展顾客的态度受到主观规范（H3）和感知行为控制（H4）的影响。这些因素均显著影响了会展顾客的参会意愿, 最终导致实际参会行为（H5）。,本论文采用实际测量数据以应用计划行为理论在会展营销和社交媒体的研究。此外, 本论文测试了三种不同社交媒体：Facebook、Twitter、和 Instagram 的粉丝用户。其研究结果证实了本论文采用的理论框架对于不同领域和社交媒体背景下的有效性。,本论文用数据证实了主观规范和感知行为控制对会展粉丝参会意愿有着显著影响, 其最终导致真正参会行为。本论文还证实了感知享受显著影响了顾客粉丝会展社交主页的态度。其研究结果表明会展企业有必要在社交媒体上树立积极的会展形象。此外, 会展营销人员和组织者在使用社交媒体作为营销手段的时候, 应该认识到其他人的意见和感知对于参会人员的意愿和行为产生影响。,本论文的研究价值主要是其强调社交媒体作为会展有效营销手段的重要性。此外, 本论文还探索了社交媒体如何影响参会人员的行为和态度, 以及社交媒体对于整个会展行业的影响, 这将对社交媒体有关的研究有着积极的贡献。,关键词偏最小二乘, 社交媒体, 社交媒体营销, 社交媒体参与, 事件营销, 计划行为理论

Consumers and professionals realize the importance of adopting social and environmental responsibility, but it is not easy for companies to implement transparent sustainability strategies that consumers can trust. Thus, it is often hard for consumers to compare brands to make conscious sustainability decisions. Blockchain technology is proposed as a bridge between ecolabels and industry initiatives as this technology provides the transparency of sustainable business practices. The objective of this study is to examine the effects of effectiveness, knowledge of the sustainability initiative, and trust in claims made by a company in ecolabels (i.e., traditional and blockchain ecolabels) on intention to buy products by comparing Generations X and Y. A total of 200 participants completed the survey. The results indicated that both the trust and knowledge measures were higher for the blockchain label than for the traditional ecolabel for Generation Y. Thus, the companies should determine how to effectively integrate this technology to the mutual benefit of the retailer and consumer by different generations.

Measuring body sizes accurately and rapidly for optimal garment fit detection has been a challenge for fashion retailers. Especially for apparel e-commerce, there is an increasing need for digital and convenient ways to obtain body measurements to provide their customers with correct-fitting products. However, the currently available methods depend on cumbersome and complex 3D reconstruction-based approaches. In this paper, we propose a novel smartphone-based body size measurement method that does not require any additional objects of a known size as a reference when acquiring a subject’s body image using a smartphone. The novelty of our proposed method is that it acquires measurement positions using body proportions and machine learning techniques, and it performs 3D reconstruction of the body using measurements obtained from two silhouette images. We applied our proposed method to measure body sizes (i.e., waist, lower hip, and thigh circumferences) of males and females for selecting well-fitted pants. The experimental results show that our proposed method gives an accuracy of 95.59% on average when estimating the size of the waist, lower hip, and thigh circumferences. Our proposed method is expected to solve issues with digital body measurements and provide a convenient garment fit detection solution for online shopping.

The apparel e-commerce industry is growing day by day. In recent times, consumers are particularly interested in an easy and time-saving way of online apparel shopping. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has generated more need for an effective and convenient online shopping solution for consumers. However, online shopping, particularly online apparel shopping, has several challenges for consumers. These issues include sizing, fit, return, and cost concerns. Especially, the fit issue is one of the cardinal factors causing hesitance and drawback in online apparel purchases. The conventional method of clothing fit detection based on body shapes relies upon manual body measurements. Since no convenient and easy-to-use method has been proposed for body shape detection, we propose an interactive smartphone application, &ldquo, SmartFit&rdquo, that will provide the optimal fitting clothing recommendation to the consumer by detecting their body shape. This optimal recommendation is provided by using image processing and machine learning that are solely dependent on smartphone images. Our preliminary assessment of the developed model shows an accuracy of 87.50% for body shape detection, producing a promising solution to the fit detection problem persisting in the digital apparel market.

Even though the small or large changes regarding sustainability are practiced in the apparel markets by the companies, there is a big gap presence from the consumers’ side. Thus, the purpose of this study is to understand apparel consumers’ knowledge of the sustainability connected to the triple bottom line by applying the transformative learning theory. A qualitative research design of focus group discussion was used for this study. Four focus groups were executed and five themes are emerged for the findings. This includes: 1) Normalizing Customer Activism, 2) Short-Sighted Actions, 3) Story Sharing with Others, 4) Filling the Information Gap, and 5) Challenging but Not Impossible. Our findings suggest that turning the sustainable product-based business from non-sustainable is not an overnight process. However, providing knowledge of sustainable practices in different stages of education based on transformative learning can speed up the process of producing and purchasing sustainable goods as well.

People are more willing to trust someone they consider to be just like them, and fashion brands and marketers have taken notice. Using online questionnaire, the researchers collected data from a total of 203 Gen Z females who were followers of fashion influencers. The study provides empirical support of the similarity attraction theory (SAT) on how fashion influencers can build their followers. The results imply that perceived similar style and perceived similar values are a couple of the main qualities consumers consider before following a fashion influencer. After they follow the said influencer, they are then more likely to interact (i.e. liking, commenting, direct messaging, etc.) with the influencer’s account and emulate their style. These results can provide valuable information to those fashion influencers seeking to grow their online community and marketers seeking to use influencers as a form of advertising.

The growth of online shopping indicates the importance of understanding various types of online shoppers and their shopping motivations and behaviors. The purpose of this research is to categorize online shopper types and to investigate these types on perceived consumer emotions with usefulness, pleasure, and obsession and e-satisfaction. Participants were recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk service linked to the Qualtrics survey. A total of 151usable data were used for data analyses and the results show that the levels of emotions and satisfaction are different by ten online shopper types categorized in this paper. In addition, online shopper types considering high quality and recreational factor of products perceived more usefulness emotion while those with price and impulsiveness perceived more obsession emotion. Thus, it is important to understand different characteristics among categorized online shopper types as this affects the online shopping satisfaction and obsession.

Sustainability is an imperative strategy for businesses today. Many apparel brands have implemented sustainable practices in their operations which often affect consumers’ perception of the brand related to sustainability. The purpose of this research was to investigate the perception of sustainability and brand love amongst Generation Z consumers by comparing outdoor and fast fashion apparel brands. A total of 213 usable data were used for data analyses. The results of the study indicate Generation Z consumers’ brand love is more related to the perceived quality of outdoor apparel brands than on the perceived value of fast fashion apparel brands. Applying the value creation framework, the value consumers place on apparel is related to sustainability based on the perceived quality of products. This will eventually impact the profitability and long-term viability of the company.

New technologies fascinate our imaginations and seem very promising for both fashion retailers and their customers. However, these types of new technologies are available for fashion retailers in the main markets, but not distributed well to the marginal markets. The purpose of this study is to understand small independent fashion retailers’ thoughts on currently available technologies, as well as opportunities and challenges of these retailers to adopt new technologies. This study used a qualitative research method of one-on-one, in-depth interviews with 11 fashion industry professionals. By using the thematic analysis, five major themes emerged including 1) Transparency and Consistency, 2) Integration of Technology, 3) Maximizing Personalization Experiences, 4)Connectedness to Social Platforms, and 5) Obscure Cost Fright. As described on the TOE framework, small independent fashion retailers are more likely to determine their adoption to the new technology based on external task environments and the technology’s compatibility.

The fashion industry struggles to maintain healthy environmental and social conditions while keeping the economic benefits. One way to inform fashion customers about the sustainability is through transparency of information. The blockchain technology is relatively new but provides the potential application for fashion companies in this regard. Thus, this study aims to investigate consumer interaction with blockchain data and the effect this have on sustainability by comparing Generations X and Y. A quantitative research method was employed for this study and a total of 200 usable data were collected. The results show that Gen X found the claims of the blockchain more effective than Gen Y. Also, Gen X put more trust in the claims made by a company than Gen Y. Thus, applying the blockchain will be a great opportunity for business to highlight the transparency of their supply chain or product that may differentiate them from their competitor.

It is important for foster caregivers to understand children's basic and psychological needs in order to provide better life experiences, and minimize the risk and vulnerability they previously experienced. Thus, this study is designed to understand clothing selection motivations and the meaning of possessions for foster tweens and how these are related to their life experiences in foster care group homes. We conducted qualitative in-depth focus group interviews with 18 tweens in a foster care group home in the Southwest region in the U.S. Thematic interpretation was used to analyze the interview data. Six themes emerged from the data including social acceptance, self-expression, family connection, independence, ownership, and respect. Participants expressed their individual character by the clothing they chose and expressed various needs of self-expression and social interaction. We also found that clothing and possessions play an important role in giving meanings to social interactions for tweens in the foster home. Furthermore, the findings of this study emphasize the need for proper education of foster care parents and tweens regarding ownership of property and respect in a foster care group home.

The spa industry has been growing rapidly in Thailand since the 1990s (Hirankitti, Mechinda, & Manjing, 2009). Being that employee productivity is a primary factor driving the success of a business, it is important to understand how employees are motivated, engaged, and retained at the work place. Therefore, the goal of this research study is to explore attitudes and levels of job satisfaction among Thai spa therapists working at day spas. An in-depth interview process was used as the primary qualitative research method for this study. Fifteen interviews were given and from a thematic analysis of the data, five themes emerged. These themes included strong open relationships in the workplace, tangible benefits, deeply rewarding career beyond financial benefits, involvement in day spa development process, and job perception conflict. Spa therapists' internal fulfillment was generated through good relationships with spa operators, co-workers, and customers as well as through involvement in the decision making process. Expectancy theory provides a model that helps explain the results of this study. Through a continuous motivation-effort-reward cycle, employees develop feelings of being satisfied with their jobs. Therefore, it is important for spa employers to be aware of the needs of their employees and to create opportunities for employees to successfully meet those needs in order to increase job satisfaction and work performance.

Communication utilizing proper message framing is a crucial component in the promotion of sustainability and other related activities. Additionally, engaging all stakeholders in sustainable communication and endeavors is proven to be essential to corporate success. This is especially true for textile and apparel retailers, as they strive to gain competitive advantages through the incorporation of sustainability in their communication with their stakeholders. Therefore, promotional activities consisting of different message framing types can be a profitable way to reach, inform, and persuade consumers to engage in sustainable activities and to support corporate sustainability initiatives. Based on two theoretical foundations, the social cognitive theory and the dual-process model, this study investigates how different aspects of sustainability and message framing can persuade textile and apparel consumers to engage in sustainable behavior. The findings of this study demonstrated that each message framing type significantly influences the consumers’ emotion. Further, when the textile and apparel consumers purchase sustainable products, as a result of conscious decision-making or without much thought put into the buying decision, the act of buying sustainable products per se compels the consumers to make sustainable choices in the future.

Individuals with Alzheimer’s disease may not be able to dress themselves due to memory limitations. Thus, the role of caregivers is important, as they are the individuals who assist those with Alzheimer’s in completing not just medical tasks, but fundamental activities of daily living, such as selecting garments to wear and getting dressed. The purpose of this study was to understand how caregivers make such choices. This study employed qualitative interviews with twelve caregivers. Four themes emerged to structure the interpretation, The Role of Proxy, Routine Selections, Gift-Giving for Loved Ones, and Triangular Relationships. In general, the higher self-complexity of individuals with Alzheimer’s stems from the confusion and frustration. Based on the framework of choosing-for-others, the clothing choices of individuals with Alzheimer’s by family member caregivers illustrate options based on the relationship and highlight the recipient’s preferences.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of exercise self-efficacy, weight concerns, self-fulfillment, and social norms on college students’ body satisfaction and self-esteem. Also, the study examined the relationship between body satisfaction and self-esteem. An online survey was used, and 187 college students participated in the study. The findings revealed that exercise self-efficacy positively influenced college students’ body satisfaction, while weight concerns negatively influenced college students’ body satisfaction. Exercise self-efficacy and self-fulfillment positively influenced self-esteem while social norms negatively influenced self-esteem. Exercise self-efficacy had the most significant positive effect on body satisfaction while social norms had the most significant negative effect on self-esteem. The results could help exercise facilities learn what to include in their programs to increase college students’ psychological well-being, including body satisfaction and self-esteem.

Military service members and their families have unique environmental factors that may influence their lifestyle and behaviors. This study, using the Social Ecological Model, was designed to explore the body image perceptions among military family members. Exploratory qualitative focus group interviews were conducted at Child Development Centers on two military bases in the southwest United States. Researchers conducted a total of eight group discussions with twenty-four parents. Four themes emerged from the discussions, and these included: Military Requirements, Partnership, Negative Fat Talk, and Encouraging Communication. These themes can inform future research about body image perceptions and weight management in military families and guide education programs.

This study is designed to understand body sizes of female college students wanting to be fashion models. Also, this study examines body size discrepancies between the actual and perceived body sizes for college students involved in fashion. Data were collected from 127 female college students who applied to be fashion models. The actual body dimensions were assessed with Body Mass Index weight status, and ASTM D 5585-11e1 standard size charts for adult female misses figure types. The result indicates that college students with fashion involvement tend to be confident about their body sizes. They seem to know or pretend not to know about their body sizes. Although this might be related to current inconsistent sizing systems in the apparel industry, we found that students involved in fashion have a discrepancy between the actual and perceived body sizes. This result is beneficial to the fashion industry’s understanding of the young generation.

Marketers use celebrity endorsements to make advertisements believable and to enhance consumer recognition of the brand name. However, once a direct link has been formed from a celebrity to a brand, the negative information about the celebrity may reflect on to the endorsed brand. Applying the S-O-R model and the balance theory, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of celebrity-brand congruence and publicity on consumers’ attitudes toward the celebrity and brand as well as their buying intention. A survey of a 2 (congruence vs. incongruence) × 2 (positive vs. negative publicity) experimental design was conducted for this study. A total of 120 female Millennial consumers answered the survey and 105 surveys with usable data were collected. The mean age of the participants was 24 years old (SD = 3.28). Results found that the celebrity-brand congruence and publicity play a significant role in consumer behavior related to attitudes toward the celebrity and brand/product, as well as buying intention. Thus, retail marketers need to allocate more investigation into celebrity endorsements that match with brand image that can lead to long-term, positive partnerships.

A university recreation center is a service provided for students benefiting their physical health while offering relief from some stress from an academic life. Understanding students' perceptions of service quality helps collegiate recreation administrators improve facilities and services to better serve current members. This study examined college students' perceptions of service quality and how perceptions affected their satisfaction and involvement at a recreation center utilizing “health and weight consciousness” as moderators. Results showed that components of service quality, including reliability (e.g., ability to perform the promised services), tangibles (e.g., facilities and equipment), and assurance (e.g., knowledge and courtesy of employees) played critical roles affecting users' satisfaction, and in turn influenced their involvement in the recreation center. Furthermore, users who care more about their health tend to be more satisfied with service quality and are more involved with activities or sports at the recreation center.

This study examines the effects of various visual apparel advertisements on consumers' brain activation during exposure to different types of advertising appeals (i.e., celebrity, non-celebrity, and rational). The influence on consumer perceptions of products and their subsequent buying intentions are also measured. A repeated measures experimental design was employed, and the total of 27 right-handed female subjects participated in the study. The results of the quantitative data showed significant differences in perceived product attractiveness for each of the three types of advertising appeals, but not in buying intentions. Regarding the fMRI results, our findings support the notion that celebrity advertising appeals are associated with heightened brain activation of memory-related/retrieval regions, reflecting how consumers remember the ad and are influenced by the attractiveness of the source. Non-celebrity advertising appeals were more closely associated with brain activation of regions thought to mediate self-reflection and also engaging executive functions. For rational advertising appeals, our findings showed significant activation in brain areas associated with logical evaluative decision making reflecting more logical processing value assessments and reward potential. Therefore, retailers/marketers must be particularly mindful to match the appropriate advertising appeal to the specific purpose of the advertisement. This study also provides brain-based insight into the effectiveness of different types of advertising appeals and whether or not they have the desired impact on the consumer. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to determine which factors impact body image satisfaction of Generation Y college age and young professional females born between the years of 1980 and 1993, age 20-33 years in the State of Texas.Design/methodology/approach– An online survey created in Qualtrics was e-mailed to recruit research participants. Quantitative data were collected and analyzed in IBM SPSS Statistics 21. Exploratory factor analysis, reliability, computing variable mean, and linear multiple regression were performed. The variables explored were divided and grouped into major factors.Findings– Millennial females are influenced by their own personal preferences, morals and beliefs, and certain occasions, seasons, climate, and the weather. These factors significantly influence body image satisfaction. The model developed in this study provides researchers with a new perspective on body image satisfaction and purchase intent. This study extends the theory of reasoned action by identifying specific factors which influence body image satisfaction which leads to the final purchase decision.Research limitations/implications– Because of this method of data collection the study might not be generalizable to the entire Millennial population. The sample is a small representative sample in the population with only Millennial females’ ages 20-33 years in the State of Texas. Although the study focussed on a single state, the state is an extremely large state encompassing 36 percent of the USA population. Additionally, race/ethnic diversity was also a limitation, as the majority of the sample was Caucasian. Thus, a larger and more diverse sample of age, race/ethnicity, and residence could be added for more generalizable results.Practical implications– The findings of this study enable retailers to understand how body image can impact the customers perceptions of their stores and their employees. Marketers and retailers should focus on marketing to Millennial females through more personal approach targeting what is appropriate for the consumers size body type labeled clothing size and certain occasions.Social implications– Confidence in decision making while purchasing apparel is an important aspect of shopping. Further research could benefit from focussing on determining the confidence drivers and their origins.Originality/value– This study enhances literature by providing a glimpse into the minds of Generation Y female consumers’ body image satisfaction and the factors driving them to purchase apparel.

Bangkok, Thailand is in a unique position to benefit economically and has become one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, due to its function as a hub for international travel in Southeast Asia. Thus, this study examines how past experiences, age, income, gender, education level, occupation, and regions affect international tourists’ reasons to visit Bangkok. After conducting chi-square analysis on 400 participants, significant differences were found among the varying income levels, occupations, education levels, and regions of origin and their reasons for visiting Bangkok. However, no significant differences were found based on age and gender regarding reasons to visit Bangkok. As far as regions of origin, Europeans were most likely to visit Bangkok as a stopover in route to another destination. This lays the foundations for further research focusing on what Bangkok can do to increase their status as a destination for European travelers.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that influence travelers’ decision-making process while searching and booking hotel deals. This study indicated that consumers’ cognition directly and significantly influenced their intent to book hotel deals. Although consumers’ affection did not have a positive and significant influence on booking intentions in general, consumers’ tendency toward being a market maven moderated the effect in consumers’ emotions of deal-searching. The findings suggested that hospitality marketers should develop promotional messages that are tailored to evoke consumers’ cognitive and affective states in terms of their tendency to be a market maven.

The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine if images of employees’ dress on apparel retailers’ recruitment web pages have an impact on undergraduates’ perceptions of the companies. Students (male=13, female=25) examined the recruitment landing pages of apparel retailers. Next, using an open-ended question, students listed adjectives to describe each retail organization’s culture based on the dress styles (formal business style, business casual style, or casual style) of employees featured on the landing pages. Students’ responses were content analyzed and categorized. Formal business styles were associated with an aggressive culture, business casual styles were associated with a supportive and innovative culture, and casual styles were associated with a supportive culture. Based on their responses, undergraduates did seem to use the style of dress featured on the models in the photographs on the recruitment landing pages as a cue related to the retailers’ culture.

Activewear that is currently available on the market may not be appealing to elderly consumers,particularly female consumers, and may discourage them from exercising.Understanding that clothing is directly related to one’s daily lifestyle, it is important to reveal how certain factors affect their behavior. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to investigate body shapes, activewear preferences,and exercise behavior for elderly female consumers. This study employed a quantitative survey method. A questionnaire and images of activewear choices were developed. A total of 242 complete data were used for further descriptive data analyses. We found that most of the elderly female consumers perceived their body shape as apple shape. They predominantly preferred loose fitting short sleeved tops and long pants for activewear. It could be related to modesty as the participants indicated that they wore their activewear for other daily activities as well.

Many consumers and professionals realize that the state of the world is declining and that change must be adopted. The problem, however, is that it is difficult for consumers to compare brands in the saturated market to make conscious sustainability decisions. This paper will propose an alternative to eco-labelling, the current marketing tool used by companies to inform consumers of their sustainability initiatives. A research model is proposed to understand the effect of Blockchain data on the three elements of ecolabels, and the resulting impact onconsumer behavior compared to the outcome of the traditional ecolabel. Businesses working with blockchain data will be able to identify inefficiencies in their supply chain, which can help determine if any necessary changes should be made.As consumers try to make conscious decisions based on the effect on the environment and society, businesses should try to position themselves within the consumer’s moral interests.

Understanding motivations, skills, and traits to be global fashion entrepreneurs will help fashion educators develop more rigorous curriculum and programs to meet the needs of these students. Thus, this study is designed to examine motivations,skills, and traits of fashion design & merchandising students and how these entrepreneurial capacity and intention to be a fashion entrepreneur are different between US and South Korean students. A quantitative survey method was used for this study. The population of interest for this study is fashion design & merchandising students in the US and South Korea. The total 174 participants completed the survey. It was found that the US students have higher motivations and skills including teacher support, learning goals, social expressivity, social sensitivity, technology skills, and technology fluency. The future research is to compare the curriculum differences between two countries.

This study aims to explore the factors attracting international tourists to visit Bangkok. A total of 396 questionnaires were completed by participants, and they were tourists who visited the main three tourist attractions in Bangkok. The results showed that international tourists were attracted to visit Bangkok by physical attractions, sociopsychological attractions, and available time. Most tourists decided to visit Bangkok as a tourist destination. In terms of physical attractions, tourists decided to go to Bangkok to escape the terrible winters of their hometown. Regarding sociopsychological attractions, tourists desired to go to Bangkok because of attitudes of local people. In addition, the amount of time tourists could spend traveling in Bangkok matched with tourists' available vacation time, which motivated them to visit Bangkok. The finding of this study suggests that infrastructure and facilities of physical and sociopsychological attractions need to be developed to attract more international tourists to visit Bangkok.

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the strategies that fast fashion retailers use to position sustainability by applying the stimulus-organism-response model. Specifically, this study investigated how sustainability positioning strategies influenced perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR) effort, price value and brand equity. Design/methodology/approach – A between-subject Web experiment was used to test the research model. Four versions of the questionnaire were developed on a commercial online survey Web site, in which the surveys were randomly distributed to participants and data were collected. Findings – The findings of this study suggest that sustainability positioning strategies can lead to the positive perceived CSR effort, thus giving support to the effectiveness of sustainability marketing for fast fashion retailers. Furthermore, purchase intentions are significantly influenced by perceived CSR effort, price value and brand equity. Originality/value – This study provides important input for practitioners by suggesting that they focus their managerial attention to sustainability and should also promote it through their positioning strategies carefully.

The purpose of this study was to explore students' ability via journaling to recognise and respond to social responsibility issues in the apparel industry. Undergraduates (n=75) enrolled in a global sourcing course were asked to read Timmerman's book [(2012). Where am I wearing? A global tour to the countries, factories, and people that make our clothes (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons], and write a journal entry for each chapter. These journal entries were content-analysed for evidence of students' ability to identify and react to incidents in the book related to three areas of social responsibility (i.e. economic, environmental, social). Five themes emerged from the analysis of the journals: Identification of Economic Issues, Impact on Women and Children, Environment Impact, Appreciation for Their Standard of Living, and Call to Action. Based on students' journal entries, it seems that Timmerman's book can be used to effectively teach undergraduates studying fashion about social responsibility ...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify selected store attributes of activewear specialty retailers that impact consumers’ satisfaction, which in turn influence word-of-mouth (WOM) and retail patronage behavior. Design/methodology/approach – Using an on-site store intercept, 150 responses were collected to answer hypothesized relationships. An exploratory factor analysis was first performed followed by a confirmatory factor analysis and a structural equation analysis. Findings – Results revealed that sales employees and store atmosphere attributes of activewear specialty stores had a positive influence on consumer satisfaction, which in turn had a direct impact on WOM and repatronage intentions for activewear specialty stores. Therefore, in order to satisfy consumers, activewear specialty retailers need to ensure that they provide an attractive and pleasant shopping atmosphere. Furthermore, satisfied consumers are likely to spread positive WOM about the retailer and display their intention to revisit the store in the future. The authors conclude by discussing the results and suggest implications and future research directions. Originality/value – The findings of this research shed light on the managerial implications for activewear specialty retailers with regards to marketing strategies and consumers’ attitudes.

Background: Pulmonary hypertension (PHT) is a recently recognized complication of chronic kidney disease. In this study, we investigated the association between PHT, peripheral vascular calcifications (VCs), and major cardiovascular events. Methods: In this retrospective study, we included 172 end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients undergoing dialysis [hemodialysis (HD)¼84, peritoneal dialysis¼88]. PHT was defined as an estimated pulmonary artery systolic pressure 437 mmHg using echocardiography. The Simple Vascular Calcification Score (SVCS) was measured using plain radiographic films of the hands and pelvis. Results: The prevalence of PHT was significantly higher in HD patients (51.2% vs. 22.7%). Dialysis patients with PHT had a significantly higher prevalence of severe VCs (SVCSZ3). In multivariate analysis, the presence of severe VCs [odds ratio (OR), 2.68], mitral valve disease (OR, 7.79), HD (OR, 3.35), and larger left atrial diameter (OR, 11.39) were independent risk factors for PHT. In addition to the presence of anemia, severe VCs, or older age, the presence of PHT was an independent predictor of major cardiovascular events in ESRD patients. Conclusion: The prevalence of PHT was higher in HD patients and was associated with higher rates of major cardiovascular events. Severe VCs are thought to be an independent risk factor for predicting PHT in ESRD patients. Therefore, in dialysis patients with PHT, careful attention should be paid to the presence of VCs and the occurrence of major cardiovascular events.

Purpose – Guided by the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) model, this study aimed to investigate direct and indirect effects of apparel store environmental characteristics and consumers' positive emotional responses to the environment on impulse buying behavior. Also, this study sought to examine how situational variables interact with consumers' positive emotional responses in influencing impulse buying behavior. Design/methodology/approach – Survey data were collected using a store intercept method from 118 female consumers of an outdoor retail store in the western region of the USA. Findings – The study found direct effects of ambient/design characteristics on consumers' positive emotional responses and direct effects of consumers' positive emotional responses to the retail environment on impulse buying behavior. Money availability and task definition moderated the relationship between consumers' positive emotional responses and impulse buying behavior. Research limitations/implications – The conceptualization of a theoretical framework of impulse buying behavior for apparel resulted from this study. Practical implications – Managing appealing store design characteristics may increase consumers' positive emotions and impulse purchases. Displays designed to attract impulse purchasers should target browsers without restricted budgets. Originality/value – This study expands the application of the S-O-R model in the context of apparel by including situational factors as moderating variables.

This study examined the impact that aspects of self-concept (i.e., generalized self-efficacy, public self-consciousness, state hope, self-esteem) have on clothing selection motivation and life satisfaction among disabled consumers. A total of 318 questionnaires were completed by participants, the majority of whom had either a mobility impairment or a visual impairment. Structural equation modeling was employed to test the hypotheses. Results indicated that for disabled consumers, generalized self-efficacy, public self-consciousness, and state hope were related to self-esteem, and also self-esteem positively influenced the assurance dimension of clothing selection motivation. Additionally, a significant relationship was found between life satisfaction and the individuality dimension of clothing selection motivation. Results shed light on the social/psychological factors influencing the clothing choices of disabled consumers and address a gap in the literature by considering clothing use among disabled consumers.

Today the term retail therapy has been used frequently and the concept of retail therapy has received notable attention from both marketers and scholars. Shopping has always been a form of therapy for consumers because they experience a significant amount of pleasure from the act of browsing or buying. Researchers have identified some factors to explain retail therapy motivations, such as loneliness, boredom, mood alleviation, and others. (Atalay & Meloy, 2011; Kang & Johnson, 2011). However, little research has been done to understand or draw linkages between personal characteristics (as antecedents) and retail therapy. Therefore, understanding what factors influence retail therapy and how the factors motivate retail therapy is critical. Consequently, this study aims to 1) examine the antecedents of retail therapy and 2) explore the impact of personal characteristics on retail therapy.

It is important to investigate how to capture their attention, and presumably increasing product attractiveness and buying intention. Along with the traditional research approaches, an increasingly popular method for assessing these factors is the study of the underlying brain activation that accompanies different types of advertising appeals designed to promote a given product. This present study attempts to fill this gap by investigating consumer brain-based activations in response to three different types of advertising appeals (i.e., celebrity, non-celebrity, rational). Twenty-seven female subjects participated and three different advertising appeals were shown to participants while in and fMRI brain scanner. Interestingly, non-celebrity appeals had the most positive effect on perceived dress attractiveness and activated regions particularly important for self-reflection. Future research employing different types of celebrities and products will provide a more complete picture of the brain mechanisms.

The study examined direct and indirect effects of retail environmental characteristics on impulse buying behavior. Guided by the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) model and impulse buying literature, the study investigated whether and how three characteristics (i.e. ambient, design, and social) of the retail environment influenced consumers' positive emotional responses which, in turn, affected impulse buying behavior. Whether and how individual factors (i.e. hedonic motivation) moderated the relationship between these characteristics and consumers' positive emotional responses were also examined. Survey data were collected using a store intercept method from 212 consumers of a retail store offering outdoor merchandise. The study found direct effects of (a) ambient/design characteristics of the retail environment on consumers' positive emotional responses to the retail environment and (b) consumers' positive emotional responses to the retail environment on impulse buying behavior. Hedonic motivation mode...