A Study of the Relationship among Perceived Quality, Country-of-origin, Brand Loyalty, and Brand Equity at a Footwear Company in Nanjing, China.

Abstract

The competition among brands is becoming increasingly critical in today’s market. As a valuable asset for a company, brand equity is crucial to brand management and also the development of a company. However, management is not easy as there are many factors affecting brand equity. The objective of this research is to study the relationship between perceived quality, brand loyalty and brand equity of a Chinese sportswear company, LI-NING. Consumers’ attitudes towards perceived quality, brand loyalty and brand equity are analyzed based on three demographic factors; age, income levels and educational background. 369 valid questionnaires were collected from LI-NING footwear purchasers. The results show that store image is the factor most influential on perceived quality while promotion is found to have no relationship with perceived quality. Country-of-origin image has a low positive relationship with brand loyalty, which has a stronger relationship with brand equity than perceived quality. The only difference there is in brand loyalty is when it is determined by different income levels and the only one with respect to brand equity is when it is segmented by different age levels.