Elena Karpova

Consumer Attitudes Toward Fashion Counterfeits: Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior

This study examines consumer motivations that can explain attitudes toward purchasing fashion counterfeit goods and tests the underlying mechanism of intent to purchase fashion counterfeits based on the theory of planned behavior. A random sample of female college students (N = 336) participate in this study. Product appearance, past purchase behavior, value consciousness, and normative susceptibility are significant predictors of attitude toward buying fashion counterfeit goods. Attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control are significantly related to intent to purchase fashion counterfeit goods. This research extends the theory of planned behavior and tests two additional paths that significantly improve explanatory power of the theory and prediction of consumer intent to buy fashion counterfeit goods.

The Efficacy of Teaching Creativity: Assessment of Student Creative Thinking Before and After Exercises

As the global environment becomes increasingly more turbulent and competitive, creativity becomes the focus when preparing current students and future citizens to deal with uncertainty and to adapt to continuous change both personally and professionally. The purpose of the study was to understand how student creative thinking could be increased in a university classroom. Creativity exercises that can be incorporated in various courses were developed. The exercises formed four learning modules: (a) what is creativity, (b) recognizing and identifying opportunities, (c) generating ideas, and (d) evaluating creative ideas. Four instructors administered the exercises in five courses. To evaluate effectiveness of the training, figural format of the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) was used to assess student creative thinking before and after completion of the exercises. Creative thinking, which was operationalized as the composite Creativity Index measured by the TTCT, was significantly higher for the total group of participants after completion of the creativity exercises than before the training. Individual class analyses showed that students in four of the five participating classes had significantly higher creative thinking after completion of the exercises. The study demonstrates that by incorporating creativity exercises into existing courses, instructors can help students develop creative thinking —a critical aspect of one’s professional development.

Making sense of the market: An exploration of apparel consumption practices of the Russian consumer

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine and interpret post‐socialist consumer experiences in relation to clothing consumption practices when consumers shop, acquire, and wear clothing and other fashion‐related products.Design/methodology/approach – The in‐depth interview was the primary data collection tool. Data collection was conducted during summer 2004 in St Petersburg, Russia. College students formed the sample for the study. In total, 17 students (four males and 13 females) were interviewed. The hermeneutic approach was used to interpret the meanings of the participant lived experiences.Findings – In comparison to consumers in an established market‐based economy, consumers in this post‐socialist market have unique perceptions of clothing attributes (quality, brand name, country of origin, retail channel) critical for buying decisions. Overall, appearance and clothing play a special role in the emerging Russian market as they help construct and communicate new identities more than any other...

The Competitive Position of Thailand’s Apparel Industry: Challenges and Opportunities for Globalization

Purpose – Recent liberalization of the worlds textile and apparel trade policies and the consequent changes in trade patterns posited threats to smaller textile‐ and apparel‐exporting nations, including Thailand. Thus it is important to understand how the new trade environment affects the competitiveness of Thailands apparel industry. This study seeks to provide insights into how Thailands apparel industry has responded to increasingly fierce global competition by drawing on Porters theory of The Competitive Advantage of Nations.Design/methodology/approach – To assess the competitiveness of the Thai industry, the study triangulated data from various sources, including secondary statistics, media reports, and relevant industry publications. In‐depth, semi‐structured interviews were also conducted, and participants included key executives from Thailands apparel industry, government officials, and academics. The interviews were conducted at various locations in three Thai provinces: Bangkok, Nonthaburi,...

Green attributes and customer satisfaction: optimization of resource allocation and performance.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to address issues of performance optimization through accounting for asymmetric responses of customer satisfaction to different types of product or service attributes: core, facilitating and “green” (eco‐friendly). The primary research inquiry was to explore how these attributes affect customer satisfaction and account for interactions among them in order to identify an optimal combination that would maximize customer satisfaction in lodging industry settings.Design/methodology/approach – An experimental design and a web‐based survey were used to collect data from a convenience sample of faculty and staff of two US universities. Univariate and regression analysis were two primary methods of data analysis.Findings – The findings confirmed non‐linear nature of customer satisfaction response and indicated that “green” attributes impact customer satisfaction similarly to facilitating attributes but differently from the core type of attributes in the context of lodging in...

Employment in the US textile and apparel industries

Purpose – To examine the impact of changes in the US textile and apparel industries on employment patterns at the state level compared with the nation as a whole during the period of 1997‐2003.Design/methodology/approach – Secondary data sources were analyzed to develop an overall picture of changes happening in the North Carolina industries compared with the USA overall. A focus on North Carolina, a primary location of the industries within the USA, permits a micro‐level examination of changes in employment trends for one state in comparison with those of the industries nation‐wide. Three industries form the bulk of the data examined: Textile Mills (NAICS‐313), Textile Product Mills (NAICS‐314), and Apparel Manufacturing (NAICS‐315).Findings – An overall decrease in employment and number of units for all three industries was found. The number of establishments in the North Carolina textile complex decreased by 25 percent and employment by almost 50 percent. The state losses resembled those of the nation ...

A Tale of Two Industries: An Interpretive Analysis of Media Reports on Textiles and Apparel in North Carolina

This qualitative study explores recent textile and apparel industry dynamics from the point of view of the news media to understand how such dynamics are presented to the general public. North Carolina, having been home to many jobs in these industries, was used as a case study. Data were a total of 600 articles from two of the states primary newspapers spanning the period from 1998 to 2003. Content of these articles was analyzed via a hermeneutic, interpretative framework to develop a thematic interpretation of the image of the two industries provided by the news media. Several themes were tied together through three broad topical areas—industry changes, strategic initiatives, and the impact of loss—and provide a multidimensional view of the industries as presented to the public. Further research is needed to understand the impact this image might have on public perceptions of the future of these industries.

Preparing Students for Careers in the Global Apparel Industry: Experiential Learning in a Virtual Multinational Team-Based Collaborative Project

The study investigated the learning experiences and outcomes of students participating in a virtual team-based multinational collaboration project. The participants in the project were 172 undergraduate students enrolled in three apparel programs located in three different countries: Australia, South Africa, and the United States. To explore student learning experiences and outcomes, 66 anonymous reflective essays were analyzed. As a result of the interpretive analysis, the three topical areas emerged: Discovering New Knowledge, Acquiring New Skills, and Personal Development. Results indicate that participation in the unique learning experience helped students acquire new knowledge and skills, become more mature, and, ultimately, feel better prepared to enter the global apparel industry. Based on our findings, we propose three components that are necessary for a successful preparation of students for the careers in the global apparel industry: (a) obtaining both general and industry-specific knowledge, (b) acquiring professional skills, and (c) personality growth and development.

Women and apparel entrepreneurship: An exploration of small business challenges and strategies in three countries

Purpose – The purpose of this study was to explore strategies used by successful female entrepreneurs to manage the challenges of running a small apparel business. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative research design was used. Primary and secondary data were collected on small business in three countries: Russia, South Africa and Thailand. In-depth interviews were conducted with a total of 11 female small apparel business owners. Businesses ranged from tailoring and custom clothing shops, to small-scale design and production, as well as small apparel retail stores. Findings – Three emergent themes highlight the similarities and differences that surfaced across the participants’ narratives. Key issues within the thematic areas point to the need for these women to be creative in finding resources to start and grow their small apparel businesses, and to manage the competition that they face within this industry. Research limitations/implications – It is difficult to generalize the findings of this stu...

Putting the puzzle together: apparel professionals' perspectives on creativity

The purpose of this study was to understand the role of creativity within the apparel industry by exploring experiences and perspectives of industry professionals. This research investigated: (1) how the industry insiders understood creativity and (2) how they utilised it in their careers. In-depth, structured interviews were used to collect the data. A total of 28 professionals in diverse positions employed in various apparel-related organisations participated in the study. A phenomenological interpretation of the data resulted in three topical areas that allowed mapping the creativity phenomenon to facilitate a deeper understanding of its nature, manifestation and outcomes. The mapping process resulted in a creativity framework that may be used for developing creative thinking skills and opens up new research venues.