The role of perceived risk in the purchase intention of a fashion private label in an online environment

Privatne marke, koje se još nazivaju trgovačkim markama, markama distributera ili posrednika doživljavaju svoj procvat na tržištu. Marke koje su na tržištu primarno bile prisutne kao generički proizvodi te ih je karakterizirala niska cijena i niska kvaliteta te su uglavnom bile kupovane za vrijeme gospodarskih kriza, naporima maloprodavača uspješno se repozicioniraju. Potrošači su prepoznali da je sama kvaliteta privatnih maraka zamjetno porasla te da privatne marke opravdavaju dobivenu vrijednost za uloženi novac. Stoga su danas privatne marke prisutne u svim kategorijama proizvoda, pa tako i u kategoriji odjeće, obuće i modnih dodataka. Značaj posjedovanja privatne modne marke posebno su prepoznali online maloprodavači koji dugogodišnjom prodajom maraka proizvođača, uvidom u trendove na tržištu, praćenjem ponašanja potrošača i njihovih preferencija odlučuju dizajnirati i lansirati svoje marke te postaju glavna prijetnja markama proizvođača. Obzirom da su percipirani rizik i namjera kupnje izuzetno važni u proučavanju potrošača i njihovog ponašanja, u ovom radu njihov odnos će se istraživati s aspekta kupnje privatne modne marke koju nude online maloprodavači. Cilj rada je spoznati ulogu različitih dimenzija percipiranog rizika u namjeri kupnje privatne modne marke u kategorijama odjeće, obuće i modnih dodataka u digitalnom svijetu. Brojna istraživanja naznačuju da je privatna marka u očima kupaca i dalje rizičnija od marke proizvođača te će stoga često posegnuti za markom proizvođača ukoliko percipiraju visok rizik proizvoda. Također, online okruženje uz svoje brojne prednosti ima i određene nedostatke, te mnogim potrošačima može biti teže kupiti neki proizvod putem Interneta. Za ispunjenje cilja rada provedena je anketa na uzorku od 112 ispitanika. Rezultati rada u suprotnosti su s dosadašnjim istraživanjima povezanim uz percepciju rizika i namjeru kupnje, a posebno u uvjetima gdje je prisutna privatna marka i online okruženje. Odnosno, prethodna istraživanja pokazala su da je percepcija rizika visoka dok je spremnost na kupnju niska, dok je u ovom istraživanju dobiven obrnut rezultat. Uočeno je da su percepcija rizika i namjera kupnje varijable koje se kreću u suprotnim smjerovima. Drugim riječima, rezultati su pokazali da ispitanici percipiraju relativno nizak rizik te relativno visoku namjeru kupnje privatne modne marke u kategorijama odjeće, obuće i modnih dodataka u online okruženju.Private labels, which are also called store brands or distributor's brands, are experiencing a boom in the market. Brands that were primarily present on the market as generic products characterized by low price and low quality and were mostly bought during economic crises, are being successfully repositioned through the efforts of retailers. Consumers have recognized that the quality of private labels has noticeably increased and that private labels justify the value for money. Therefore, today private labels are present in all product categories, including clothing, footwear, and fashion accessories. The importance of owning a fashion private label has been especially recognized by online retailers who, through long-term sales of manufacturer's brands, insight into market trends, monitoring consumer behavior and preferences, decided to design and launch their own brands and become the main threat to manufacturer's brands. Considering that perceived risk and purchase intention are extremely important in examining consumer behavior, in this paper their relationship will be investigated from the aspect of purchasing a fashion private label offered by online retailers. The aim of this paper is to gain more insight into different dimensions of perceived risk and their role in the purchase intention of a fashion private label in the categories of clothing, footwear, and fashion accessories in the online environment. Numerous studies indicate that the private label is still a riskier option than the manufacturer's brand, and customers will often reach for the manufacturer's brand if they perceive a high product risk. Also, the online environment, along with its many advantages, also has certain disadvantages, and it can be more difficult for many consumers to buy a product via the Internet. In order to fulfill the objective, a survey was conducted on a sample of 112 respondents. The results of the research are in contrast with previous research related to risk perception and purchase intention, especially in relation to private label and an online environment. Moreover, previous research has shown that perceived risk is high while the willingness to purchase is low, however the opposite finding was achieved in this research. It was observed that perceived risk and purchase intention are variables that move in opposite directions. In other words, the results showed that respondents perceive a relatively low risk and a relatively high intention to purchase a fashion private label in the categories of clothing, footwear, and fashion accessories in the online environment