Proceedings | Marketing area | Year 2015
 

Jeans never die: Why Thai people buy them

by Kacha Tanthavach; Parisa Rungruang; Phallapa Petison
  
  Management and Business Academy International Business Conference in London, UK 3-5 July 2015

Abstract

“Jeans never die” is always a topic in an apparel industry around the world. Although jeans were originally designed for heavy labour and used in the countries with cool weather, they are also part of everyday life of people in Thailand where the climate is different. Thus it is of interest to explore the consumer insight on factors affecting the decision making behavior of Thai customers towards buying a pair of jeans as it could be different from those found in USA and Canada. The current study focused on the two major factors which are visual and tactile inputs and aimed to examine the impact of these two factors on decision making. A qualitative approach was used in which in-depth interviews were conducted at five main Levi’s original stores in Bangkok, Thailand with 25 Thai respondents who purchased jeans. The content analysis was then employed as analytical technique. The results revealed that most Thai customers emphasized more on tactile inputs or the feeling of the jeans, rather than the visual or look of the jeans.. Fit, durability, and quality were most frequently mentioned, followed by design, color, and price. The findings of the study further help merchants understand Thai customer decision making when buying jeans and therefore develop right market mix to suit customer preferences.

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