Consumer perceptions of brands and the effect of store image.

The aim of this thesis is to explore the interrelationship between store image and the different types of brands a store sells. Specifically, this research looks to discover whether store image influences consumers’ perceptions of the types of brands a clothing retail store sells, in addition to whether the brands a store stocks influence how a consumer perceives the image of store. A qualitative research approach was used in order to better understand and comprehend the relationship between store image and brands and the effect they have on how consumers form perceptions and evaluate both store and brands in a retail environment. Data was collected using protocol analysis and through conducting in-depth, semi-structured interviews with twelve participants. This was followed by a thematic analysis of the collected data. From the data analysis, eight central themes emerged. Those being; image reflection; interaction between store and brand types; familiarity; brand trust; reputation and status; building reciprocal relationships; consistency with one’s self; and social influence. The study suggests that the way in which consumers form their perceptions is very much a complex understanding, and whilst in a general sense each of the themes discovered are independent of one another, they are very much interrelated in the way that they work together in a consumer’s mind. These themes contribute to a framework that was developed to represent the key findings of this research. As a result, this research shows how millennial consumers form perceptions of stores and brands in a novel situation, and what the role both store image and brands play in that. This research contributes to extant literature on consumers’ perceptions of stores and brands and the influence branding has on those perceptions by bridging the gap between knowing and understanding that store image influences consumers’ perceptions, and how it is that these perceptions are formed exactly and what effect store image and brands have on those perceptions. It looks to establish and understand the evaluative process of millennial consumers when they are choosing and forming perceptions of stores and brands, and how that interrelationship between store image and brands works through the themes that emerged