The Impact of Culture on Luxury Consumption Behaviour: An Empirical Study on Chinese’ and Italians’ Behaviours

Abstract

The aim of the thesis is to understand if and how cultural factors have an impact on luxury consumption behaviour. The first Chapter is a general background on culture, consumer behaviour and the relationship between these two topics. In the second Chapter the attention moves to a description of the meaning of luxury as a term; the analysis of the four dimensions (functional, financial, individual and social) that influence a consumer perception of luxury; a description of how religion and the country of origin influence luxury consumption behaviour and an analysis of Chinese luxury consumption. In the last Chapter the personal contribution to this topic can be found: two different countries that are relevant to the luxury market (China and Italy) have been chosen to conduct an empirical study aimed at discovering the impact of culture on luxury consumption behaviour.