A Qualitative Investigation of Factors Influencing Luxury Purchase Decision Making: Are U.S. University Students Buying on Impulse?

Abstract

As luxury markets become more respondent to trends since the advent of social media, marketing campaigns are incentivized to employ new stimuli in attracting younger consumers. This shifting environment suggests the usefulness of investigating younger generations luxury shopping behaviors. Thus, this study examines U.S. university students motivations for luxury consumption and evaluates whether this demographic group perceives their luxury purchases to be impulse driven. The study utilizes an online survey format, implementing Likert type items and free response sections to both quantitatively and qualitatively assess participants luxury buying tendencies in relation to the motivating effects of product-related, internal, and situational factors. The results found that U.S. university students are most stimulated by financial availability and product characteristics, when making luxury item purchases. Furthermore, more young consumers tend to characterize their luxury shopping tendencies as rational, though a smaller subgroup of the population admit to being somewhat impulsive.