One notable trend that can be observed in the 21st century is the increasing visibility of objects that stem from or look like products of past times. In nearly every market segment consumers nowadays can find products from bygone decades. Concerning automobiles, for example, the industry offers the New Beetle of Volkswagen, a modernised version of the Mini Cooper of BWM, and the PT Cruiser of Chrysler. With regard to furniture, consumers witness the reoccurrence of beanbags, inflatable chairs and fringed carpets (Flokati), just like the ones that were popular during the 70ies. Fashion companies like Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) and C&A (founders: Clemens & August Brenninkmeyer), as well as sports wear producers like Adidas and Puma, offer clothes that look like the fashion from the 60ies or 80ies. Taking a closer look to the German market, the TV broadcasts 80ies TV-shows, such as for example “Die 80er Jahre Show” (translation: The 80ies show) or the “Comeback Show”. Add to this, nightclubs and cafes are even decorated with 70ies wallpaper. Furthermore, the beverage industry offers soft drinks and syrups that were popular during the 70ies and 80ies such as TRiTOP, Bluna and Afri Cola (Eberenz, 2003; Seidel, 2003).
Sometimes, these products are just nostalgia styled like the PT Cruiser. The vehicle looks partly like a “1920s gangster car, part[ly like a] 1950s hot rod and part[ly like a] London taxicab” (Ball, 1999). However, other products appear with the name of a once very prominent brand. These brands had either completely disappeared from the market or had become for some reason unfavourable in the eyes of consumers and sales levelled towards zero.
Table of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC
1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT
1.2.1 SUB QUESTIONS
1.3 DELIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
1.4 CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE STUDY
1.4.1 THEORETICAL CONTRIBUTION
1.4.2 PRACTICAL CONTRIBUTION
1.5 OUTLINE OF THE STUDY
2 BRANDS AND BRAND REVIVAL
2.1 INTRODUCTION
2.2 THE CONCEPT OF THE BRAND
2.2.1 BRAND DEFINITION
2.2.2 THE ROLE OF A BRAND FOR CONSUMERS
2.2.3 ROLE OF A BRAND FOR COMPANIES
2.3 RETRO BRANDING
2.3.1 THE NOTION OF BRAND EQUITY
2.3.2 DEFINITION OF RETRO BRANDING
2.3.3 DIFFERENTIATION TO SIMILAR CONCEPTS
2.4 CONCLUSION
3 OPPORTUNITIES AND RISKS OF BRAND REVIVAL (RETRO BRANDING)
3.1 INTRODUCTION
3.2 CHANGED CONDITIONS OF BRAND MANAGEMENT
3.2.1 SAVVY CONSUMERS
3.2.2 BRAND PROLIFERATION
3.2.3 NEW BRAND LAUNCHES WITH INCREASED COMPETITION
3.2.4 AGEING CUSTOMER BASES
3.3 RETRO BRANDING AND LINE EXTENSION
3.3.1 LINE EXTENSION
3.3.2 INTEGRATING RETRO BRANDING
3.4 OPPORTUNITIES OF RETRO BRANDING
3.4.1 CONSUMER LEVEL
3.4.2 RETAIL LEVEL
3.4.3 COMPANY LEVEL
3.5 RISKS OF RETRO BRANDING
3.6 CONCLUSION
4 FACTORS INFLUENCING THE INTENTION TO BUY RETRO BRANDS
4.1 INTRODUCTION
4.2 THE BASIC INFLUENCING CONCEPTS OF NOSTALGIA AND AUTHENTICITY
4.2.1 NOSTALGIA
4.2.2 NOSTALGIA AND RETRO BRANDS
4.2.2.1 Communal nostalgia
4.2.2.2 Personal nostalgia
4.2.2.3 Historical Nostalgia
4.2.3 THE QUEST FOR AUTHENTICITY
4.2.4 QUEST FOR AUTHENTICITY AND RETRO BRANDS
4.3 ADDITIONAL INFLUENCING FACTORS
4.3.1 IDENTITY AND RETRO BRANDS
4.3.2 INDIVIDUALISM AND RETRO BRANDS
4.3.3 BRAND FAMILIARITY AND RETRO BRANDS
4.3.4 PERCEIVED QUALITY AND RETRO BRANDS
4.3.5 UPDATING AND RETRO BRANDS
4.4 CONCLUSION
5 METHODOLOGY
5.1 INTRODUCTION
5.2 PRIMARY DATA AND SECONDARY DATA
5.3 QUALITATIVE VERSUS QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
5.4 RESEARCH APPROACH
5.5 ANALYSIS OF THE RESULTS
5.6 ASSESSMENT OF THE RESEARCH
5.7 CONCLUSION
6 DISCUSSION OF THE RESULTS
6.1 INTRODUCTION
6.2 NOSTALGIA
6.2.1 PROPOSITION 1A
6.2.2 PROPOSITION 1B
6.2.3 PROPOSITION 1C
6.2.4 PROPOSITION 1D
6.3 AUTHENTICITY
6.3.1 PROPOSITION 2A
6.3.2 PROPOSITION 2B
6.4 IDENTITY
6.4.1 PROPOSITION 3
6.5 INDIVIDUALISM
6.5.1 PROPOSITION 4A
6.5.2 PROPOSITION 4B
6.6 FAMILIARITY WITH THE BRAND NAME
6.6.1 PROPOSITION 5A
6.6.2 PROPOSITION 5B
6.6.3 PROPOSITION 5C
6.7 PERCEIVED QUALITY
6.7.1 PROPOSITIONS 6A AND 6B
6.7.2 PROPOSITION 6C
6.8 UPDATING
6.8.1 PROPOSITION 7
6.9 ADDITIONAL FACTOR: CHEATING
6.10 CONCLUSION
6.10.1 INITIAL TRIAL OF RETRO BRANDS BY OLDER CONSUMERS
6.10.2 ONGOING PURCHASES OF RETRO BRANDS BY OLDER CONSUMERS
6.10.3 INITIAL TRIAL OF RETRO BRANDS BY YOUNGER CONSUMERS
6.10.4 ONGOING PURCHASES OF RETRO BRANDS BY YOUNGER CONSUMERS
7 CONCLUSION
7.1 RECOMMENDATIONS
7.1.1 PRODUCT-RELATED DECISIONS
7.1.2 PROMOTION-RELATED DECISIONS
7.1.3 PRICE-RELATED DECISIONS
7.1.4 PLACE-RELATED DECISIONS
7.1.5 OUTLOOK
7.2 FURTHER RESEARCH
7.3 LIMITATIONS
Research Goals and Key Themes
This thesis aims to explore the factors that influence consumers' decisions to purchase retro brands, providing a strategic foundation for marketing managers to optimize their marketing mix. The research focuses on identifying the underlying psychological and behavioral motivations behind this consumer trend, specifically comparing different age groups.
- Psychological drivers such as nostalgia and the quest for authenticity.
- The role of brand familiarity and perceived quality in purchasing decisions.
- The impact of updating traditional brands to contemporary standards on consumer acceptance.
- Strategic recommendations for managing the marketing mix of retro brands (product, promotion, price, place).
Excerpt from the Book
1.1 General introduction to the topic
One notable trend that can be observed in the 21st century is the increasing visibility of objects that stem from or look like products of past times. In nearly every market segment consumers nowadays can find products from bygone decades. Concerning automobiles, for example, the industry offers the New Beetle of Volkswagen, a modernised version of the Mini Cooper of BWM, and the PT Cruiser of Chrysler. With regard to furniture, consumers witness the reoccurrence of beanbags, inflatable chairs and fringed carpets (Flokati), just like the ones that were popular during the 70ies. Fashion companies like Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) and C&A (founders: Clemens & August Brenninkmeyer), as well as sports wear producers like Adidas and Puma, offer clothes that look like the fashion from the 60ies or 80ies.
Sometimes, these products are just nostalgia styled like the PT Cruiser. The vehicle looks partly like a “1920s gangster car, part[ly like a] 1950s hot rod and part[ly like a] London taxicab” (Ball, 1999). However, other products appear with the name of a once very prominent brand. These brands had either completely disappeared from the market or had become for some reason unfavourable in the eyes of consumers and sales levelled towards zero.
One of the most well known examples of these revived traditional brands is the already mentioned VW New Beetle. The brand was reintroduced in 1998; about 20 years after Volkswagen stopped producing the original Bug (Naughton & Vlasic, 1998). Since its reintroduction, sales proof very successful, already 600.000 models have been sold. Other very successful examples of currently reintroduced or “re-discovered” brands – so-called retro brands - in Germany are TRiTOP, Ahoj-Brause, Afri Cola, Brauner Bär ice cream, and Crème 21, amongst others.
Summary of Chapters
1 INTRODUCTION: Outlines the trend of retro branding and defines the research problem and sub-questions regarding consumer motivations and marketing strategy.
2 BRANDS AND BRAND REVIVAL: Defines the core concepts of branding, brand equity, and retro branding, distinguishing the latter from other brand management strategies.
3 OPPORTUNITIES AND RISKS OF BRAND REVIVAL (RETRO BRANDING): Analyzes the market conditions and strategic implications, positioning retro branding as a specific form of line extension.
4 FACTORS INFLUENCING THE INTENTION TO BUY RETRO BRANDS: Develops a conceptual model identifying nostalgia, authenticity, identity, and quality as key drivers for consumer purchase intention.
5 METHODOLOGY: Describes the qualitative research design, specifically the semi-structured interviews conducted with eighteen respondents across two age cohorts.
6 DISCUSSION OF THE RESULTS: Interprets the interview findings and evaluates the predefined propositions concerning the influence of nostalgia, authenticity, and brand familiarity.
7 CONCLUSION: Summarizes the study findings and provides actionable recommendations for the marketing mix of retro brands while addressing research limitations.
Keywords
Retro Branding, Brand Revival, Consumer Motivation, Nostalgia, Authenticity, Brand Equity, Marketing Mix, Brand Familiarity, Perceived Quality, Identity, Individualism, Market Research, Qualitative Analysis, Line Extension.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The research focuses on understanding the underlying factors that drive consumers to purchase retro brands and how these motivations can be leveraged by marketing managers.
What are the primary themes discussed in the study?
The study centers on psychological motivations like nostalgia and the quest for authenticity, as well as marketing factors including perceived quality, brand familiarity, and the strategic positioning of revived brands.
What is the main research objective?
The primary goal is to answer the problem statement regarding which factors influence consumers' intention to buy retro brands and how these influence marketing mix decisions.
Which scientific methodology is applied?
The study employs a qualitative, deductive approach, utilizing semi-structured interviews with eighteen respondents categorized into two distinct age groups.
What is covered in the main section of the paper?
The main sections establish the theoretical framework of brand equity and retro branding, discuss the changing conditions of brand management, and analyze the results of empirical data to validate propositions regarding consumer behavior.
What are the characterizing keywords of this work?
The study is characterized by concepts such as Retro Branding, Nostalgia, Authenticity, Brand Equity, and Consumer Behavior.
How does the age of the consumer affect the perception of retro brands?
The research highlights significant differences: older consumers often link retro brands to personal nostalgia and childhood memories, while younger consumers are more driven by historical nostalgia and the perceived trendy or fashionable nature of retro designs.
What role does the "updating" of a brand play?
Updating is identified as crucial for maintaining functionality and quality standards; however, it must be balanced carefully, as excessive modernization can sometimes diminish the nostalgic value and perceived authenticity of the brand.
- Quote paper
- Nora Henning (Author), 2004, Brands in the Retrospective. A consumer motivation study, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/36251
