Materialism as Predictor of Purchase Intention Towards Counterfeit Products: A Conceptual Framework

Abstract

Counterfeit products are replicas of genuine brands having identical packaging, trademarks and labels. India is not new to counterfeit products. Various studies have highlighted the growing demand for and consumers purchasing these products to satisfy their need to be socially accepted and for showcasing their status. In the Indian context, scant research has been conducted exploring the factors influencing the purchase intention towards counterfeit products. The present paper focuses on the dimension of materialism, one of the factors, that has not been documented and explored in the Indian setting and is identified as a research gap. A conceptual model is proposed, featuring various dimensions which influence materialism and eventually result in purchase of the counterfeit products. The literature is extensively reviewed to gauge as to how the constructs of life satisfaction, self-monitoring, family structure and status consumption are moderated by social conformity, eventually leading to materialism and purchase intention. This paper will help the marketers to frame their marketing and communication strategies by considering these determinants which will trigger the purchase intention of the consumers towards counterfeit products in the Indian marketplace.