Showing Off or Fitting In: The Case of Young Luxury Consumers in China

Although our understandings of consumer behaviour for luxury goods have come a long way from Veblen’s (1899) theory of conspicuous consumption, much of the academic literature has been written from a Western perspective and... [ view full abstract ]

Although our understandings of consumer behaviour for luxury goods have come a long way from Veblen’s (1899) theory of conspicuous consumption, much of the academic literature has been written from a Western perspective and very little from an Eastern one. This paper aims to close this gap by examining the lived experience of luxury consumption amongst Generation Y consumers in China from a socio-cultural perspective. Using the theory of Social Identity Theory (SIT), it explores the role which luxury brands play in their everyday life and the influence of reference groups on their consumption behaviour. The findings of an exploratory qualitative study of fifteen Chinese Generation Y consumers offer insights into the influence of self-concept and group influence on identity construction, but highlight tensions and anxieties associated with luxury consumption in this particular cultural setting.