Chapter 4 - Pearson
Chapter 4 - Pearson
Chapter 4 - Pearson
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If the retailer can feature products that help people realize their ideal self, people will<br />
buy more of them. The cosmetics industry, in particular, offers products to make people apdia76827_ch04.qxd<br />
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76 SECTION I Introduction to Fashion Retailing<br />
It is apparent that the first two levels are of little importance to fashion merchants, since<br />
people’s purchasing to meet these needs are totally rational and must provide for survival and<br />
security. The remaining levels have strong implications for fashion retailers, who must determine<br />
how they could best satisfy people’s needs for recognition, acceptance, esteem, and<br />
status.<br />
The Concept of Decision Making<br />
The concept of decision making consists of five stages. By becoming familiar with how people<br />
make choices, the fashion merchants can gain still more insight into satisfying their customers’<br />
needs. The process involves the following:<br />
1. Awareness of Need. Some stimulus such as advertising, a visual presentation, or a special<br />
event ignites need for a product. For example, a woman receives a wedding invitation.<br />
2. Gathering Information. Once the woman determined that she wants to attend the wedding,<br />
she begins to gather the necessary information to satisfy the need. She may want to buy a dress<br />
to wear or buy a present for the newlyweds. She may know about places where she can buy<br />
these items from either print or broadcast advertisements; recollections of stores, catalogs; or<br />
Websites that had satisfied such needs in the past; or a friend’s suggestion.<br />
3. Evaluating Choices. Oftentimes there are many dresses or gifts from which to choose. The<br />
woman must evaluate each before reaching a final decision.<br />
4. Making the Decision. The woman carefully measures each item against established criteria<br />
that might include price, attractiveness of the product, alternate uses, and so forth. Once<br />
she has studied the items in question she makes a decision to purchase or not to purchase.<br />
If she has not reached a positive decision to buy a dress or gift, she continues the process<br />
until the need is satisfied. It is at this level that the retailer plays an important role. Through<br />
understanding the principles of decision making, the retailer can apply various approaches<br />
to assist the customer with the selection.<br />
5. Satisfaction with the Decision. After the woman buys a dress to wear to the wedding, she<br />
may consider whether or not the decision was appropriate. Was the red dress she bought as<br />
practical as the black one left behind? Was the price reasonable or more than she should<br />
have spent? Will the selection satisfy her emotional needs, which is the underlying reason<br />
for most purchases of fashion merchandise? The answers the retailer can provide to these<br />
and other questions can either make the customer a “regular” or dissuade her from again patronizing<br />
the store. It is therefore important for the merchant to be as helpful as possible by<br />
assisting the customer, making suggestions that will be both beneficial to her, and assuring<br />
her that the red dress she chose is the best one for this wedding.<br />
The Self-Concept Theory<br />
The self-concept theory focuses on how the consumers perceive themselves. Fashion retailers<br />
can gain another perspective of their customers by applying this theory to how they<br />
stock their inventories. The four concepts are as follows:<br />
1. Real Self. This describes what the person really is in terms of ability, appearance, interest,<br />
and so forth.<br />
2. Ideal Self. This is what the person would like to be and is always trying to achieve. The<br />
fashion retailer attempts to satisfy this aspect by offering merchandise that would help them<br />
attain their desired image. The woman who saves and saves so that she can purchase a new<br />
fur coat or a smashing piece of jewelry to make herself feel successful and the man who<br />
uses the newest male-oriented line of cosmetics to achieve an impression of rugged, outdoors<br />
looks are two examples of this aspect.<br />
3. Other Self. This is a combination of the real self and ideal self; what the person’s self-image<br />
is.<br />
4. Ideal Other. This is how others perceive the person and how the person would like to be<br />
perceived by others. It combines the first three aspects of real self, ideal self, and other self.