Ram Herstein

The limits ofguanxi from the perspective of the Israeli diamond industry

Purpose - Recognizing the significant impact of Design/methodology/approach - To illustrate the evolutional direction of the Chinese institutional system, the authors compare it to a similar system that went through the evolutionary cycle from a social to a rational institutional base of exchange and discuss what one can learn from the institutional evolution process of the global diamond industry and its implications for the current evolution of Chinese institutions. The authors compare two similar cultures/religions, Judaism and Confucianism. Findings - This study found parallels between the evolution of the Israeli diamond industry, dominated by Orthodox Jews, from a social exchange mechanism to a transactional mechanism and the present ongoing rationalization of the Chinese economy, dominated by the Confucianism culture from a social to a transactional business mechanism. Originality/value - Despite the vast efforts of researchers in the area of

Gender differences in brand commitment, impulse buying, and hedonic consumption

Purpose – Gender is one of the most common forms of segmentation used by marketers. However, not enough data on gender differences has been collected in the field of consumer behavior. Based on tenets from evolutionary psychology, the purpose of this paper is to hypothesize that in comparison to men, women will report higher levels of brand commitment, hedonic consumption, and impulse buying.Design/methodology/approach – In total, 257 students (153 males and 104 females; M age=29.9, SD=6.7) completed questionnaires.Findings – As hypothesized, women had higher levels of brand commitment (t(254)=2.32, p < 0.05, Cohens d=0.31), hedonic consumption (t(254)=4.19, p < 0.01, Cohens d=0.53), and impulse buying in comparison to men.Research limitations/implications – The study was conducted on shopping in general, while gender differences may be product‐dependent.Practical implications – Since women have higher levels of brand commitment than men, retailers should promote high quality brands for their female cus...

The role of private branding in improving service quality

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to examine the potential contribution of private branding to the service sector, and to integrate private branding into the SERVQUAL model.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 300 customers of a health maintenance organization (HMO) were asked about the five dimensions of the service‐quality model and about several aspects of their HMOs private brand.Findings – The study finds that satisfaction with service quality among subjects who were aware of the HMOs private brand was higher than that of unaware subjects when asked directly. In addition, a positive relationship was found between the perceptions of service quality in the HMO and the evaluation of a private brand in the HMO those customers who were aware of the private brand. The data analysis suggests that private branding constitutes an additional (sixth) dimension in the SERVQUAL model.Research limitations/implications – This research was conducted during the initial stages of the market penetration o...

Launching store brands in emerging markets: resistance crumbles

Purpose – Store brands, which were once only found on the shelves of developed countries, are now being introduced in emerging markets in increasing amounts. The purpose of this paper is to describe the store brand process as it is found in emerging markets. In doing so, the authors explain what are the forces that have led to the development of store brands in emerging markets and the sort of strategies that should be implemented.Design/methodology/approach – The paper provides comparative statistics showing the penetration of store brands in both developed and emerging markets. Then, the conditions that determine whether store brands should be adopted by retailers are identified and discussed.Findings – Five key factors have been identified that explain successful management approaches to introducing store brands in developed as compared to emerging markets. These include the number of store brand categories available, the quality of store brands, type of products, the manufacturers of the products and ...

An investigation of the new generic consumer

Purpose – This research is designed to characterize new generic consumers and assess their willingness to purchase generic brands in non‐generic product categories.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 500 generic consumers participated in the study. Participants were customers of two large private chain stores in central Israel, known for their abundance of generic products.Findings – the paper finds that new generic consumers have a somewhat different profile than that of generic consumers of the 1980s. Furthermore, generic consumers are prepared to purchase generic brands even in categories not defined as generic.Research limitations/implications – The study focused on a market characterized by economic instability, which may contribute to strong readiness to purchase generic brands even in product categories not generic by definition. Future research is needed to study the profile of the new generic consumer from the perspective of cultural differences among countries and not within countries.Pract...

Thin line between country, city, and region branding:

For decades the literature of place branding reflects a picture of separation between country branding, city branding and region branding. Many researchers tend to perceive these three concepts as three different concepts that have no conception and should be addressed in different forms of strategies. Practically, it appeared that country branding, city branding and region branding processes are integral parts which in some instances can not be separated. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to describe a new approach of re-branding countries strategy in accordance to two dimensions: the geography of the country vs. the range of ethnic groups in the country. These two dimensions create four types of positioning strategies that reflect the tight linkage between country branding, city branding and region branding. Each of these positioning strategies is discussed and examples to this linkage are provided.

The effect of personality traits on private brand consumer tendencies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the association between three personality traits (individualism, materialism and the “need for cognition”) and two characteristics of shoppers who buy private‐label brands (their predisposition to do so, and the importance they attach to the “brand dimensions”) across four member countries of the Union of the Mediterranean.Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire in the local language, using questions, items and scales adapted from previous studies, was completed by 683 undergraduate students. The scaled data were analysed by SPSS, and tested for internal reliability and equivalence.Findings – Overall, the personality traits were significantly associated with both behavioural characteristics. Specifically, materialism and the need for cognition were linked to inclination to purchase private brands, and materialism and individualism to the perceived importance of brand dimensions. Cross‐cultural differences were found.Originality/value – The demogr...

Communicating a new corporate image during privatization: the case of El Al airlines

Purpose – The importance of corporate image management in the airline industry has increased substantially in recent years. More and more managers of airline companies have found themselves changing their companys corporate image in order to ensure a more modern and updated identity. The purpose of this case study is to trace the new corporate image communication design and implementation phases of the privatization process of El Al airlines.Design/methodology/approach – This article explores the transition process of a government‐owned airline with a popular‐national image to a private company with an exclusive‐national image, focusing on the implementation of its new corporate image communication process.Findings – The case study described here suggests that the corporate image communication process of a company that has become a private entity should be holistic and takes place on four levels – internal and external, formal and informal.Originality/value – This unique case study adds a new element to ...

Private and national brand consumers' images of fashion stores

Purpose – The present study aims to investigate the role of brand store image in the context of private and national fashion brands. The study examines two issues: do private brand consumers differ from national brand consumers in their perception of the attributes they value in their store image? And, do fashion consumers in general differ in their perception of the attributes they value in a store image? Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected through a field survey comprising 395 respondents: 195 private brand consumers and 200 national brand consumers. Findings – Findings indicate that the two groups of consumers do not differ in their perception of store image. Cluster analysis reveals two groups of consumers: “Brand Store Image Enthusiasts” who are high in their perception of their brand store image attributes, and “Brand Store Image Indifferent” consumers who are low in their perception of their brand store image attributes. The first group was also found to have greater brand loyalty. Pr...

Guanxi: the evolutionary process of management in China

As China becomes increasingly important to the global economy, it becomes increasingly prudent to understand the mindset of the Chinese manager. Recognising the significant impact of guanxi and its influence on management in China is important for Western firms. The paper illustrates the evolutionary process of the Chinese managerial infrastructure and builds a basic framework for understanding it better. This study found that China is in the midst of an institutional managerial evolution from a communist based managerial system to a capitalistic socialist system managed by the communist party. An attempt to replace the old discretion based system of revenue sharing with a new rule based system of revenue-sharing demanded an evolution of managerial practices. The managerial aspects of how to transform the present Chinese managerial approach to an Anglo Saxon, transparent one based on clear rules of trade backed by a strong business ethics backbone and models is crucial.