Examining consumers’ luxury hotel stay repurchase intentions-incorporating a luxury hotel brand attachment variable into a luxury consumption value model

Purpose: Luxury consumption research has focused more on the consumers of goods than services, despite the trend that consumers are more interested in luxury services, such as luxury hospitality services, than ever before. Additionally, the results regarding the factors that can influence consumers’ luxury service product purchase intentions can be further tested. The purposes of this research are to examine the factors that contribute to consumers’ luxury hotel stay repurchase intentions, to further develop the luxury hospitality service consumption literature, and to identify implications for practitioners to consider. Design: To contribute to the luxury consumption literature, this research incorporates a “luxury hotel brand attachment” variable into a luxury consumption value model to examine consumers’ intentions to repurchase luxury hotel stays when traveling for tourism purposes. We draw on a survey of over 450 luxury hotel consumers. Findings: Our findings confirm that luxury hotels’ perceived functional value, hedonic value, and symbolic / expressive value affect consumers’ emotions, which in turn affects their luxury hotel attachment and repurchase intentions. In addition, luxury hotel attachment moderates the influence of emotion on repurchase intention. Originality: This study conceptualizes tourists’ luxury hotel stay intentions by examining the influence of perceived luxury value (i.e. functional value, financial value, hedonic value, and symbolic / expressive value), tourists’ emotions, and luxury hotel brand attachment. Several implications of the study are identified, and avenues for future research are suggested. In addition, this research explores how luxury hotel brand attachment can moderate the relationship between consumers’ emotions and their repurchase intentions. Several implications of the study are identified, and avenues for future research are suggested

The effects of luxury restaurant environments on diners’ emotions and loyalty : incorporating diner expectations into an extended Mehrabian-Russell model

Purpose: Consumers dine at luxury restaurants for reasons beyond fulfilling basic needs. However, little is known about the factors that contribute to diners’ emotions and loyalty toward luxury restaurants. This paper examines diners’ luxury restaurant consumption behavior by incorporating diner expectations into a modified Mehrabian–Russell model. Design/methodology/approach: To examine the proposed six hypotheses, qualitative and quantitative studies were performed. Following exploratory qualitative research, 310 consumers who dined at Taiwan’s five-star hotel restaurants were recruited for the main study. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings: The results show that restaurants’ stimuli influence diners’ positive and negative emotions (organisms), which, in turn, affect their loyalty toward luxury restaurants (responses). Furthermore, customers with different levels of expectation react differently to stimuli. Practical implications: This study offers new empirical support for the proposition that diner expectation plays a role in building customer loyalty and thereby shades both theoretical and managerial understanding of the luxury restaurant consumption process. Originality/value: This study conceptualizes diners’ loyalty toward luxury restaurants (e.g., revisiting and recommending luxury restaurants) by examining the influence of restaurants’ stimuli, diners’ emotions, and customers’ expectations toward luxury restaurants. Additionally, this study offers some managerial implications for practitioners

A model for managing service encounters for neo-luxury consumers

Purpose This paper aims to explore a theoretical relationship among perceptions of consumer social class, the perceived legitimacy of customer requests for service and the delivery of intangible services. It focuses the discussion on service firm encounters with non-traditional consumers seeking to purchase from luxury brands.Design/methodology/approach The paper reviews the literature for current trends in strategies of luxury brands and characteristics of evolving global and Asian consumer markets for luxury and neo-luxury goods and draws a theoretic model with propositions.Findings Evidence suggests that service providers can improve efforts to expand services to the newly rich and trading-up neo-luxury consumer markets by focusing on the intangible elements of the service delivery system. Particular emphasis is placed on enhancing employee treatment of neo-luxury customers during service encounters by understanding the influence of employee perceptions of consumer social class and evaluations of the perceived legitimacy of customer requests for service.Originality/value The paper contributes to the theoretical discussion in luxury brand management by suggesting that employees are influenced by impressions of customer worth and other attributes when determining responses to customers during service encounters. Implications for practitioners and future research directions for academics based on the framework are presented