1 Cross-national market segmentation in the fashion industry A Study of Korean, US and EU consumers (Ko et al.

., 2007) Fashion lifestyle is considered as an important variable in predicting consumer shopping behavior in retail environments. As prior researchers have not identified a stable set of lifestyle segments and tested whether these segments cut across (= exceed, cross) cultures, the following study intends to fill this gap. Especially the rapid globalization and the issues in adapting globalised marketing campaigns give rise to examine whether there are cross-national market segments in the fashion industry and if so, whether these segments can be targeted effectively via the use of a global advertising campaign. The research is conducted by assessing 3 adverts, which appear as part of a global advertising campaign and are tested, if they equally appeal to the segments. A research sample of Korean, US and EU female consumers is used for this study. Global fashion brands are increasingly being sold among Asian consumers, such as in China, Japan and South Korea. Especially in those countries, young consumers are extremely fashion and brand conscious. The rise for companies to consider global brands came with the popularity of consumers, who prefer branded goods with a global image, even those with non-superior quality and value. Companies therefore have to identity differences in consumer attitudes toward global advertisements, based on segments that cut across nations. Various studies on product and advertising standardization, as well as on Global Marketing Strategies (GMS) have been undertaken, however relatively few address the issue on cross-national segments and their appropriate targeting. Female consumers are specifically highlighted in the context of cross-national segmentation, as they are 1) more fashion conscious, 2) more knowledgeable about fashion and 3) read more fashion magazines. This indicates that marketers have to pay special attention to this group when advertising fashion brands to international markets. The two main Research Questions are explores in this context:
RQ1 Are there cross-national lifestyle segments that can be targeted by marketers of womens fashion merchandise? RQ2 What type of advertising for fashion merchandise is most effective with women of different lifestyle segments and nationalities?

Global Advertising The fashion industry is characterized by a considerable amount of standardized advertising. Global advertising in fashion magazines, such as Elle or Vogue particularly helps to create an image of a designer brand name, such as for apparel, perfume etc. and has been exploited by many leading firms. Global strategic advertising is aggressively expanding to Europe, Asia and the US, which helps companies to increase sales. From a cross cultural perspective, it has been argued that standardized adverts can have different effects in different cultures. This indicates that Global firms must track their advertising effectiveness and develop an alternative positioning strategy in various nations. As defined by Taylor (2005) a global advertising campaign refers to a campaign in a standardized advertising strategy across all markets. Standardization has traditionally been conceptualized at 3 levels: Strategy, Execution and Language.

2 Fashion lifestyle segmentation The emergence of a new consumer group who has similar preferences for globally promoted goods is evident. This new consumer group can be referred to global consumers. Authors define them as people who exhibit similarities to people in other nations in terms of lifestyle and consumption patterns. Hence, it is crucial to examine the global consumer context and patterns which cut across national boundaries. Lifestyle segmentation therefore is crucial to consider for marketers. The following elements were identified within previous studies: Bickle (1994) identified 3 particular fashion 1) Symbolic/instrumental users: lifestyle segments: young, innovative, fashion conscious, higher social class 2) Practical/constructive users: comfort and function oriented rather than fashion, not likely to enjoy shopping 3) Apathetic users: discount focused Kim & Lee (2000) in another study highlight 6 Price consciousness, fashion consciousness, fashion lifestyles: information seeking, self confidence, attitude towards local stores, and time consciousness Lee at al. further separate the TV home Aesthetic group, economic fashion innovator shoppers into 4 segments based on lifestyle: group, uncritical group, fashion uninterested group

GMS Model: Conceptualization of a GM strategy (Zou & Cavusgil, 2002) The GMs (Global Marketing Strategy) Model is an important tool for marketers and acts as a useful theoretical framework to examine the opportunities, created by global marketing and advertising. The authors suggest, that firms, who follow a GMS are more successful in terms of financial and strategic performance than those who do not. The model, comprising 8 dimensions, is outlined as follows:

3 GMS theory suggests that: 1) External pressures are leading firms to consider appealing cross market segments and use global advertising strategies 2) Standardized advertising in the fashion industry is becoming more necessary and effective due to globalization trends. 3) The emergence of the global consumer should lead marketers to seek out cross-market segments to implement more truly global strategies, characterized by more standardized product offering, promotion and marketing variables. GLM theory is further used to predict the impact of the variables 1) fashion lifestyles and 2) nationality. A particular interest lies in the evaluation on whether the lifestyle segment is a more important driver of the effectiveness of adverts than the nationality. Attitude towards the advert and the brand and purchase intention serve as the dependent variables for assessing the global marketing effectiveness within the 3 nations adverts, Korea, France and US. Fashion Lifestyle and nationality serve as the independent variables. Therefore the following Hypothesis should be considered: H1: Distinct lifestyle segments exist that cut across consumers of different nationalities. H2: Attitude toward the advert for global advertising of a fashion-based product is influenced by both the fashion lifestyle (H2a) segment and nationality (H2b). However, the impact of fashion lifestyle is stronger (H2c) H3: Attitude toward the brand for global advertising of a fashion-based product is influenced by both fashion lifestyle (H3a) segment and nationality (H3b). However, the impact of fashion lifestyle is stronger (H3c) H4: Purchase intention for global advertising of a fashion-based product is influenced by both fashion lifestyle (H4a) segment and nationality (H4b). However, the impact of fashion lifestyle is stronger (H4c).

Methodology Three adverts of Chanel were used from the same advertising campaign as in Korea, France and the US versions in the Vogue magazine. A questionnaire was created, including 4 main variables: 1) 2) 3) 4) Recognition of advertisements and the brand Advertising effectiveness, fashion lifestyle and nationality

Furthermore 3 control variables, relating to brand experience were incorporated: prior exposure to ads for the brand, recognition of the brand, purchase of the brand.

4 Importance of the three measures within the research: 1) Attitude of the ad: Attitude refers to the consistent tendency to respond favorably or unfavorably to a specific object. Attitude towards the ad therefore refers to the advertisements receivers predisposition = their favorable or unfavorable response to a certain advertising stimulus. 2) Attitude towards the brand: Contains practical elements rising from cognitive responses and sensuous elements, involving attitude towards the advert. For foreign brands, e.g., such as US and EU brands, the locally produced commercial resulted in a significantly higher attitude towards the brands in Hong Kong, e.g.! 3) Purchase intention: Crucial consumer behavior component for indicating advertising or communication effects. It can be linked to market sales. Research Sample Results A Cluster Analysis helped to determine whether consumers could be segmented into district groups, based on fashion lifestyle factors. The clustering was undertaken with the aim to reduce similarity and redundancy among clusters and to divide respondents accordingly. As a result, 4 clusters emerged: Cluster 1: Information seekers Cluster 2: Sensation Seekers Cluster 3: Utilitarian consumers Cluster 4: Conspicuous consumers 104 Korean 65 US 41 EU female consumers who were residents or visitors to SEOUL Majority of respondents was between 20-36 years old and single.

These 4 clusters indicate significant differences in all fashion brand lifestyle factors (Prestige, Sensational, Practical, and Informational). H1: supported (as there are fashion lifestyle segments which cut across cultures) H2 a): supported; b) supported; c) supported H3 a): supported; b) rejected c) strongly supported H4 a): supported; b) rejected; c) supported

By examining whether 3 ads, which appear as part of a global advertising campaign, appeal equally to the identified segments, the following results became evident: 1) There is evidence of cross-national fashion segments for consumers 2) Targeting the cross-market segment in a global adv. campaign is more effective than designing an advert, which appeals to consumers of only one nationality. 3) There are interactions between the fashion lifestyle segment and nationality, suggesting that occasionally a campaign needs to be modestly changed. 4) The 4 identified segments are consistent with the apparel consumer segments identified by Shim & Bickle, 1994, but not verified within a cross-national study. These segments were significantly different for attitude towards the ad, brand and purchase intention. E.g. information seekers & sensation seekers tend to have more favorable attitudes towards the French and US ad versions, compared to the other segments.

5 Overall one can indicate that there is a trend towards a global consumer culture, especially in the marketing context for fashion products. In terms of segmenting the Fashion market, the global consumer culture has a much stronger influence compared to the cross national influences. Therefore, it is particularly important that marketers have to consider the motivations of the segment, which they are trying to target across markets.