Analysis on Influential Factors of Consumer Needs in Fashion Using the Generative Tools

Abstract

Consumer understanding has been dealt as one of the most crucial issues related to consumption in industrial field and marketing (Jang, 2007

Gordon R et al., 1994

W. Goldsmith and Clutterbuck, 1985

Peters and Waterman 1982), design (Sung et al., 1999

Kim, 1994

Karl et al., 2008

Kimmel, 2015), the academic and research field (Ju et al., 2013

Ryeo et al., 2012). The importance of consumer understanding grew as the global competition came to be severe. The specific and the most noticeable example is the competition between SPA brands. Along with intense interest toward SPA brands and consumer understanding, consumer behavior has been the field that was studied the most among research studies for SPA brands (Lee, 2014). However, it was found that there lack the research studies that are done in the consumer-centered way. The changed state of consumers as a conceiver for products and ideas (Coughlan and Prokopoff, 2004

Kim, 2007) and changed paradigm of research studies and business (Sanders, 2002) are demanding usage of more consumer-centered way. Zaltman (2003) also points out the shortages and errors of previous studies which could not deal with the needs in unconscious level of consumers. Examining the limitations above, this research study tried to collect multiple levels of needs that are from conscious to unconscious levels of consumers through consumer-centered way so that the influential factors for the consumer needs in fashion could be found. Based on the collected data, the structure map of consumer needs was made to explain the structure and mechanism of consumer needs. For consumer-centered way of research study, the participants attended this research as co-workers who make the results and knowledge of the results rather than as a subject for measurement. Also, the generative tools were selected among many kinds of interpretivist tools to figure out multitude levels of consumer needs through making process. The participants were provided make-tools related to the subject, fashion and performed making activities. Each participant had three steps with make-tools and four interviews to explain their results. Through these processes, the participants could find the information related to their needs for fashion which they did not recognized before. Also, this whole process enabled the researcher to have close and detailed observation on the phenomenon. The verbal explanation and words that the participants used were recorded on the manuscript for the analysis in further step. This manuscript was analyzed through the way of group consensus. Then, the consideration on the structure and mechanism for the influential factors for the consumer needs in fashion and how they work together was progressed. Through this research study, the researcher found that personal factors, environment and media are working as three influential factors for consumer needs in fashion. Furthermore, how these three factors work together to make the latent and tacit needs in unconsciousness into observable and explicit needs in consciousness were examined. Among the information and thoughts from the environment which are subsided in unconsciousness, the information and thoughts that are affected by media unconsciously come to be latent and tacit needs. The needs in this level are unrecognized although they have influence of the behavior and needs which are expressed. After becoming strengthened by the media again, these latent and tacit needs turn into observable and explicit needs when they match with personal factors. This implies that the fashion companies and enterprises can have more influence by making a practical use of media which is easier for those companies and enterprises to intervene than personal factors and environment. Also, consumers can lead the fashion market by forming consumer needs in fashion through practical use of media. In addition, the point that this research study used interpretivist way to study consumer needs in fashion makes this study meaningful.