It has been showed that COO of product has an effect on consumers purchase decisions. Companies are trying to find ways to differentiate their brands from those of their competitors. In many cases the use of COO is considered difficult and is not understood to the level where it would add to the brand value of those companies. Academic areas such as nation branding, COO (country of origin), brand positioning and brand communications work as a base for the investigation of our research problem. The study uses Finland as a study objective to investigate how companies aiming for international markets can use their COO in smart ways when creating and developing their brand identities. The knowledge in these areas is deepened through semi structured interviews with six experts from different fields. The previous academic areas acknowledge that the communication needs to be directed for the right consumers, in a way that suits the recipient. Since consumers in international markets often share multiple/different perceptions and associations, when communicating the origin of a brand, a customer centric approach in the communications is vital. The study finds that country of origin, when used in corporate branding often needs to be explained through storytelling, that emphasizes why the origin adds value. This is done by translating aspects about the COO in to a form which consumers are able to understand and appreciate. An additional finding the study makes is the symbiosis between the companies and their country of origin. The companies have the ability to shape the nation brand of their origin, and hence, aid their own branding capabilities. Marketers need to understand the value of their COO and see the possibilities it may offer. This realization creates a symbiance between the brand and its origin which will create long term positive implications.

Background: The sociodemographic characteristics of consumers, as important determinants of consumer behavior, has not received much attention in research on Country of Origin (COO) effect. In practical, the rapid progress of urbanization in China has brought great demand in the furniture and home-decoration market. Sweden has variety of world-famous furniture and home-decoration brands and most of these have established business in China. There has rarely been research on Chinese consumers’ perceptions of Swedish furniture and home-decoration brands. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of Chinese consumers’ sociodemographic characteristics on COO product image in terms of Swedish furniture and home-decoration products and how this affects and influences purchase intentions. Methods: Quantitative research is used in this study through a survey based on an online questionnaire. We test our research model with seven hypotheses based on the survey consisting of 269 valid questionnaires from Chinese consumers. Findings: This empirical study investigates Chinese consumers’ perceptions of Country of Origin image in their evaluation of Swedish furniture and home-decoration products and examines how these are affected by consumers’ sociodemographic characteristics. Taking into account the distinct situation of the Chinese market, we disentangle sociodemographic aspects: age, gender, education and individual income, especially in terms of overseas experience and the scale of city in which the consumer lives. We posit that Chinese consumers’ perceptions of Swedish furniture and home-decoration products vary across distinct facets of sociodemographics. Our finding is that age, education, overseas experience and scale of city do have a significant effect on COO product image, but that age and individual income do not significant influence COO product image.

Os estereótipos que as pessoas tendem a desenvolver com relação a outras pessoas e países e, conseqüentemente, aos produtos fabricados nesses países, podem transcender as avaliações de marcas ou produtos específicos e determinar, até certo ponto, as suas intenções de compra e o seu comportamento. Este é o chamado efeito país de origem. Os trabalhos efetuados sobre o tema indicam que o efeito país de origem pode ser moderado por uma variedade de informações intrínsecas e extrínsecas sobre o produto, e por fatores ambientais e culturais. Como existem poucas pesquisas acadêmicas sobre a influência dos valores pessoais nas avaliações de diferentes países e de produtos estrangeiros, torna-se relevante um estudo que investigue esta relação. Neste contexto, a presente tese aborda o seguinte problema de pesquisa: quais valores pessoais afetam as avaliações dos consumidores sobre produtos estrangeiros, com base na imagem dos países de origem desses produtos? Especificamente, procurou-se verificar se existem diferenças na referida relação, dependendo de características demográficas dos consumidores, como sexo, idade, familiaridade com o país e formação educacional. A pesquisa empírica caracterizou-se como sendo predominantemente exploratória, utilizando o método transversal simples para a coleta dos dados. A população-alvo foi definida como sendo os alunos e ex-alunos de cursos de pós-graduação de três instituições localizadas no estado de São Paulo, representando potenciais compradores dos produtos estrangeiros. Os produtos analisados foram eletrodomésticos chineses. Como resultado, cabe destacar que os valores pessoais são um construto multidimensional, com cada dimensão exercendo uma influência diferente nas avaliações dos produtos estrangeiros. Os valores pessoais que mais afetam a avaliação de produtos estrangeiros são aqueles relacionados à dimensão Civilidade (Amoroso, Animado, Asseado, Responsável, Polido, Prestativo e Honesto). Em seguida, vêm os valores da dimensão Auto-direção (Lógico, Intelectual, Capaz, Imaginativo, Independente, Corajoso, Liberal e Ambicioso). Por último, têm-se os valores da dimensão Conformidade (Obediente, Auto-controlado e Tolerante). Concluiu-se, também, que os valores pessoais dos consumidores afetam de forma diferente a avaliação de produtos estrangeiros, dependendo de características demográficas dos consumidores, como idade, sexo, familiaridade com o país de origem e formação educacional. Previa-se que, nos consumidores mais jovens, haveria uma influência mais favorável dos valores pessoais no efeito país de origem do que nos consumidores mais velhos. No entanto, esta hipótese não foi confirmada. Outra hipótese era de que, nos consumidores do sexo masculino, haveria também uma influência mais favorável dos valores pessoais no efeito país de origem do que nos consumidores do sexo feminino. Contudo, tal hipótese também não foi confirmada. Foram também verificadas diferenças com relação aos valores pessoais que mais influenciam o efeito país de origem, dependendo do nível de familiaridade dos respondentes com a China, e da área de formação educacional (Ciências Exatas, Humanas ou Biológicas). Os resultados encontrados fornecem uma compreensão adicional sobre as influências sofridas pelo consumidor em um processo de decisão de compra. Considera-se, portanto, que foi realizado um avanço no estado da arte nas pesquisas sobre o tema efeito país de origem, uma vez que foram investigados aspectos não mensurados em outras pesquisas. A partir dos resultados da presente tese, acredita-se que profissionais e teóricos de marketing podem melhor gerenciar o uso do país de origem de um produto como uma ferramenta de marketing. Além disso, os achados desta pesquisa podem ajudar as agências governamentais responsáveis pelo desenvolvimento da imagem de um país a ajustar as estratégias de marca aos diferentes grupos de indivíduos no mundo, de acordo com os valores pessoais predominantes em cada grupo. / Stereotypes people tend to develop towards other people and countries and, consequently, towards the products made in these countries, can transcend specific brand or products evaluations and determine, to some extent, their purchase intentions and behavior. This is the so-called country-of-origin effect. The researches done on this subject indicate that the country-of-origin effect can be moderated by a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic information about the product, and also by environmental and cultural factors. Since there are few academic papers on the influence that personal values exert on the evaluations of different countries and foreign products, a study that focuses this relation becomes relevant. In this context, the present thesis approaches the following research problem: what are the personal values that affect the consumers? evaluations of foreign products, based on these products? countries image? Specifically, it was verified if there were differences in the referred relation, depending on demographic characteristics such as gender, age, familiarity with the country and education background. The empirical research was predominantly exploratory, using the survey method for collecting the data. The target population was defined as post-graduation students and former students from three institutions located at São Paulo state, representing potential buyers of foreign products. The products under analysis were Chinese household appliances. As a result, it is worth mentioning that personal values are a multi-dimensional construct, with each dimension exerting a different influence on foreign products evaluation. The personal values that most affect foreign products evaluation are those related to the Civility dimension (Loving, Cheerful, Clean, Responsible, Polite, Helpful and Honest). Next, come the values from the Self-direction dimension (Logical, Intellectual, Capable, Imaginative, Independent, Courageous, Broad-minded and Ambitious). Last, there are the values from the Conformity dimension (Obedient, Self-controlled and Forgiving). It was concluded, moreover, that consumers? personal values differently affect the evaluation of foreign products, depending on consumers? demographic characteristics such as age, gender, familiarity with the country and education background. It was foreseen that, in younger consumers, there would be a more favorable influence of personal values in the country-of-origin effect than in the older ones. However, this hypothesis was not confirmed. Other hypothesis was that in male consumers, there would also be a more favorable influence of personal values in the country-of-origin effect than in the female ones. Nevertheless, such hypothesis was not confirmed either. There were also verified differences concerning the personal values that most influence the country-of-origin effect, depending on respondents? familiarity level with China and education background (Exact, Humanity and Biological Sciences). The results provide an additional understanding with regards to the influences consumers suffer during a purchase decision process. Therefore, it is considered that it was made an advance in the state of the art of researches about the country of origin theme, since aspects not measured in other works were investigated. With the results obtained, it is believed that marketing professionals and researchers can better manage the use of a products? country of origin as a marketing tool. Additionally, these research findings can help governmental agencies that are responsible for developing a country?s image to adjust the branding strategies to different groups of people in the world, depending on the personal values that predominate in each group.

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No. of bitstreams: 1 pmdgi - paulette skierski pós-banca.pdf: 1279732 bytes, checksum: e09dd754d13123992bfb1864e22982be (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-02-21 / The main objective of this PhD thesis was to understand the relation between international mobility of academics (IMA) and innovation, and its impacts on the countries of origin and destination of researchers. For this purpose three diverse and complementary articles were developed with specific methodologies through which deepens relevant aspects of the proposed discussion. The aim of the first article was to perform a meta-analysis in order to understand the relation between IMA with variables, proxies of innovation, and their impacts in the countries of destination, origin, and destination and origin simultaneously of the researchers. After the elaboration of a rigorous research protocol from 36 articles selected in 15 top journals of the Scopus and ISI Web of Science databases, 20 variables were identified, including five of them, with positive, negative or null impacts for the countries. The study brings contributions to the academy insofar as IMA generates innovation through the development of research networks, the increase of publications with better quality, the increase of citations, and the generation of partnerships between universities, industries and laboratories that can improve education and science. Knowing the types of innovation that IMA generates enables governments that wish to invest in scientific, technological, economic and social development to choose the best measures of attraction and retention of brains. For industry, technological catch-up and highly skilled labour (HSL), means enhancing competitiveness and capacity building, growth of research and development (R&D), creating new products, patent filing, increased investments and expansion of internationalization. The objective of the second research was to investigate which of the following factors is most important in the academics mobility decision: the impact of the science, technology and innovation (ST&I) infrastructure, or the quality of life in the host country. Were considered journals of scientific prestige and research and development (R&D) institutions as proxies for ST&I and the human development index (HDI) as a proxy for quality of life. These data came from several databases. The results of a multiple linear regression show that, although the ST&I infrastructure takes precedence over quality of life, both are influential factors in academics mobility decisions. The results offer guidance for academics in their decisions regarding mobility, as well as offering guidance for government policy-makers with regard to national investments to address brain drain and brain gain. The third study aimed to investigate the relation between patent filing, proxy for innovation, with IMA, education and applied research. For this purpose, primary databases at the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), and secondary databases of the Lattes Platform, Linkedin and Foundation for Research Support of the State of São Paulo (FAPESP) were carried out. The first two Brazilian universities according to the INPI (2014) patent ranking were the University of São Paulo (USP), with a universe of 282 inventors who filed 78 patents followed by the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) with a universe of 190 inventors who filed 60 patents. The results show a positive relation between the number of patents deposited with education, participation in IMA programs and applied research. / O objetivo central desta tese foi entender a relação entre mobilidade acadêmica internacional (MAI) e inovação, e seus impactos nos países de origem e de destino dos pesquisadores. Para isso o trabalho desenvolve três artigos diversos e complementares com metodologias específicas através das quais aprofunda aspectos relevantes da discussão proposta. O primeiro artigo teve como objetivo realizar uma meta-análise afim de entender a relação entre MAI com variáveis, proxies de inovação e seus impactos nos países de destino, de origem, e de destino e origem simultâneamente dos pesquisadores. Após a elaboração de um rigoroso protocolo de pesquisa a partir de 36 artigos selecionados em 15 top journals das bases Scopus e ISI Web of Science, foram localizadas 20 variáveis, dentre as quais cinco de inovação, com impactos positivos, negativos ou nulo para os países. O estudo traz contribuições para a academia na medida em que a MAI gera inovação através do desenvolvimento de redes de pesquisa, do incremento das publicações com melhor qualidade, do aumento de citações, além da geração de parcerias entre universidades, indústrias e laboratórios que podem trazer melhorias à educação e ciência. Conhecer os tipos de inovação que a MAI gera possibilita aos governos que desejam investir no desenvolvimento científico-tecnológico, econômico e social escolher as melhores medidas de atração e retenção de cérebros. Para a indústria o catch-up tecnológico e a mão de obra altamente qualificada significam aprimoramento da competitividade e capacitação, crescimento da pesquisa e desenvolvimento (P&D), desenvolvimento de novos produtos, depósito de patentes, maiores investimentos e expansão da internacionalização. A segunda pesquisa teve como propósito verificar qual fator é preponderante para a decisão de MAI: o impacto da infraestrutura de ciência, tecnologia e inovação (CTI) ou da qualidade de vida no país hospedeiro. Desse modo, o objetivo do artigo foi verificar se fatores relacionados à infraestrutura de CTI e qualidade de vida estão associados à MAI dos recursos humanos em ciência e tecnologia (RHCT) e quais deles têm maior peso na decisão de mobilidade. Foi analisada a relação da mobilidade dos acadêmicos com a presença de journals de impacto e prestígio, instituições de P&D, como proxies de CTI, e o índice de desenvolvimento humano (IDH), como proxy de qualidade de vida. A metodologia foi quantitativa por meio de uma técnica estatística descritiva confirmatória de regressão linear múltipla. Foram usados dados de fontes secundárias da OECD, UNESCO, World Bank, Global Innovation Index, United Nations Development Programme. Os resultados mostraram a preponderância da infraestrutura de CTI sobre a qualidade de vida. Todavia, embora, a primeira tenha uma importância maior para explicar a mobilidade dos acadêmicos é necessário que as duas figurem conjuntamente. A contribuição acadêmica reside na preponderância à infraestrutura de CTI, mas associada à qualidade de vida. A contribuição para os Estados reside na necessidade de garantir ambas as condições para a atração dos acadêmicos. Para os gestores de universidades ficou clara a necessidade de um investimento maciço em CTI. O terceiro estudo teve como finalidade investigar a relação entre depósito de patentes, indicador de inovação, com MAI, educação e pesquisa aplicada. Para tanto, foi realizada uma coleta de dados de bases primárias do Instituto Nacional de Propriedade Industrial (INPI) e secundárias da Plataforma Lattes, Linkedin, e Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP). As duas primeiras universidades brasileiras do ranking de patentes de 2014 do INPI foram a Universidade de São Paulo (USP), com um universo formado por 282 inventores que depositaram 78 patentes seguida pela Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) com um universo formado por 190 inventores que depositaram 60 patentes. Os resultados revelaram existir uma relação positiva entre o número de patentes depositadas com educação, participação em programas de MAI e pesquisa aplicada.

Ao mesmo tempo em que a globalização dos mercados avançou, houve uma crescente expansão de pesquisas sobre o efeito país de origem no comércio internacional e na literatura de marketing. Em geral, considera-se que o país de origem influencia as avaliações de produtos pelo consumidor e as suas decisões de compra. Os efeitos do país de origem nas avaliações de produtos pelo consumidor podem ser mediados por uma variedade de informações intrínsecas e extrínsecas sobre o produto, e também por fatores ambientais e culturais. Comum à maioria dos estudos sobre indicações múltiplas sobre o produto é a noção de que as percepções do consumidor são importantes porque irão, no final, influenciar suas escolhas por um produto ou uma marca. Como as organizações lidam com recursos limitados, elas precisam tentar desenvolver estratégias apropriadas à sua base de recursos. Nesse sentido, o país de origem pode vir a ser utilizado como parte de uma estratégia de diferenciação de produtos brasileiros em mercados internacionais. Porém, no Brasil, os estudos sobre os efeitos relacionados com a informação do país de origem ainda estão dando seus primeiros passos, o que torna relevante a contribuição do presente estudo. O problema geral de investigação é definido como: a imagem que os consumidores estrangeiros têm acerca do Brasil influencia a atitude com relação aos produtos brasileiros? O objetivo geral dessa pesquisa é, portanto, investigar, com base na literatura, a influência que a imagem de país de origem tem sobre a atitude de consumidores em relação a produtos estrangeiros e verificar tais relações por meio de uma pesquisa cujo foco é o Brasil como país de origem de produtos de alto e baixo envolvimento. Os produtos brasileiros analisados são carne bovina, frutas frescas, calçados e móveis. Para mensurar essa relação, foram utilizadas as cinco dimensões de imagem de país de origem identificadas por Ayrosa (2002) para avaliar a imagem que os consumidores estrangeiros possuem acerca do Brasil e as escalas indicadas por Assael (1995) e McDaniel e Gates (1996) para mensurar os três componentes da atitude dos consumidores estrangeiros com relação aos produtos brasileiros. A população-alvo da pesquisa foi definida como sendo os estudantes holandeses da School of Economics Haarlem, Holanda, totalizando 1901 estudantes. Verificou-se, tanto na revisão da literatura, quanto na pesquisa empírica, que a imagem de um país não é um construto único, existindo algumas dimensões que definem a imagem de um país; algumas positivas e outras negativas. Dessa forma, ao analisar a imagem de um país, devem ser consideradas todas as dimensões, de modo que as causas de uma imagem positiva ou negativa possam ser compreendidas. Os resultados da pesquisa empírica apontam a existência do efeito país de origem, tanto para cada produto investigado na pesquisa, como para esses produtos de uma forma geral, com exceção da carne bovina brasileira. Conforme antecipado, a maioria dos resultados demonstrou que a imagem do Brasil afeta de forma negativa as atitudes com relação aos produtos brasileiros. Com relação aos fatores mediadores do efeito país de origem investigados, familiaridade e envolvimento com os produtos, as hipóteses de que o efeito seria mais intenso para consumidores menos familiarizados e menos envolvidos com os produtos não foram confirmadas. Os resultados dessa pesquisa podem fornecer mais elementos para a discussão acerca da utilização da imagem do Brasil na exportação dos produtos brasileiros, auxiliando empresas brasileiras que precisam lidar com questões relacionadas ao país de origem em suas atividades internacionais de marketing. / At the same time that the globalization of markets has progressed, there has been a growing expansion of researches on the country-of-origin effect, both in the international trade and in the marketing literature. In general, it is admitted that the country of origin influences consumer’s products evaluations and his/her purchase decisions. The country-of-origin effects on the products evaluations can be moderated by a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic information about the product and also by environmental and cultural factors. For the majority of the studies about multiple cues of the product, it is seen that the consumer perceptions are important because they will, ultimately, influence the consumer’s choices for one product or brand. Since organizations deal with limited resources, they need to try to develop strategies that are appropriated for their resource base. In this sense, the country of origin can be used as part of a differentiation strategy for Brazilian products in international markets. Nevertheless, in Brazil, the studies about the effects related to the country of origin information are still on their first steps, indicating the relevance of the present study’s contribution. The general problem of investigation is defined as: does the image foreign consumers have about Brazil influence their attitude towards Brazilian products? Therefore, this research’s general objective is to investigate, based on literature, the influence that country of origin image has on attitudes consumers have towards foreign products and verify such relations by means of a research whose focus is Brazil as a country of origin of high and low involvement products. The Brazilian products analyzed are cow meat, fresh fruits, shoes and furniture. In order to measure this relationship, the five dimensions of country of origin image identified by Ayrosa (2002) were used to evaluate the image foreign consumers have about Brazil. The scales indicated by Assael (1995) and McDaniel and Gates (1996) were used to measure the three components of attitude that foreign consumers have towards Brazilian products. The research’s target population was defined as the Dutch undergraduate students from the School of Economics Haarlem (in the Netherlands), totalizing 1901 students. It was seen that, both in the literature review and in the empirical research, a country’s image is not a single construct. There are some dimensions that define a country’s image; some are positive and others are negative. In this regard, when a country’s image is analyzed, all dimensions have to be considered, so that the causes of a positive or negative image can be understood. The results of the empirical research denote the existence of the country of origin effect, both to each product investigated in the research and also to these products in a general way, with the exception of cow meat. As foreseen, the majority of results showed that Brazil’s image negatively affects the attitudes towards Brazilian products. In relation to the country of origin moderating factors investigated, namely product familiarity and involvement, the hypotheses that the effect would be stronger for consumers less familiarized and less involved with the products were not confirmed. This research results can provide more elements for the discussion about the use of Brazil’s image when promoting Brazilian products in foreign markets. This could help Brazilian companies that need to deal with issues related to country of origin in their international marketing activities.

Nation as a brand represents the intangible assets of a country, encompassing various dimensions such as politics, economics, culture, history, and technology. However, much of extant work in nation branding has been limited to the empirical investigations of its positioning and implementation for specific countries, while other scholarly works in nation branding are conceptual. Various factors associated with nation branding are discussed in the literature, but there is no organizing mechanism to connect these factors to explore the dynamics underlying nation branding. To fill this gap, this dissertation attempts to identify the relevant factors underlying the deployment of nation branding, and to develop models to assess the association among these factors. Hunt and Morgan's resource advantage theory serves as the theoretical foundation of this dissertation's framework. After establishing panel data models that link the factors of building and developing the nation brand, the strategic implications of nation branding are discussed. Archival data were used for economic factors such as economic development, tourism, export, and inward foreign investment, and cultural, political, infrastructural, and geographical factors. The primary data were collected for qualitative factors perceived reputable brand and perceived reputable industry. The Anholt-GfK Roper's 2008 Nation Brands IndexSM was incorporated into the model as a moderating variable to test its impact on the relationship between the dependent variables and the independent variables. A total of 24 nations were analyzed to build and validate the models. This dissertation makes several contributions to the nation branding literature. First, it clarifies the definition of nation brand and nation branding. Second, it builds a predictive econometric model to connect the critical determinant and outcome factors of nation branding. Finally, it discusses nation branding strategies in terms of resource advantage theory and provides crucial insights on the development and management of a nation brand that can be used by researchers, marketing managers, and stakeholders of the nation brand to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of nation branding.

This paper investigates how professionals within the Italian fashion industrycollaborate and communicate to develop the nation brand Made in Italy. Theproblem of brand confusion, which occurs when the different parties within anation does not cooperate towards a distinct brand message, is analysed.Based on a theoretical review of previous studies in nation branding,interviews and observations in the area of Florence and a desk study ofscientific papers, articles and literature, the model “The Nation Brand Tree”was developed. This was applied to the case of Made in Italy. Conclusions: Thecertification “100% Made in Italy” was proven to be an ineffective solution ofsaving the Italian heritage of craftsmanship and quality. The Italian nationbrand is currently being preserved by private investors, but there is a need forincreased governmental support to create a stronger and unified nation brandfor Made in Italy. / Program: Textilekonomutbildningen

The purpose of this study is to map out and analyse the competitiveness of the clothing-manufacturing sector in Rwanda on a local, regional and international level. The research was carried out as a case study of the Rwandan clothing-manufacturing sector through a two-months field study in Rwanda. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with local fashion designers, clothing manufacturers and ministry representatives. Observations in manufacturing plants, local markets and tailoring studios were also carried out. The findings were analyzed through an analysis model based on Porter’s diamond model, enhanced with the notions of country of origin effect (COO), corporate social responsibility (CSR) and customer-based brand equity (CBBE). The findings show a sector that is struggling with its competitiveness on a local, regional and international level. Lack of relevant factor conditions such as cheap labour and energy as well as low local demand indicates that the country is not suitable for mass-production of clothes. The emerging fashion scene shows abundance in creativity and entrepreneurship, but there is a need for more developed tailoring skills, product quality level and knowledge in management and marketing. Rwanda is not competitive for mass-production of clothing, but the sector could profile itself on high-end fashion and products with craftsmanship qualities. Allocating resources to education and investments in supporting industries could help the Rwandan clothing-manufacturing sector to profile itself on a regional and international market. No studies on the Rwandan clothing-manufacturing sector and its competitiveness have been done since 1989. Due to the shifting focus towards East-Africa as a textile and clothing-manufacturing hub, an update of the situation in Rwanda was found relevant. The study contributes to the existing literature on competitiveness in the textile industry and forms a relevant stepping-stone for further research. / Program: Textilekonomutbildningen

Research on consumers’ attitude on shop window displays is still a sphere that lacks attention from researchers in the field of consumer behaviour. Moreover, one of the most upcoming research fields recently is Islamic marketing field. Thus, this work is focused on the research of Saudi Arabia consumers’ attitudes on international brands shop window displays. For this purpose the questionnaire was created and spread out in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. There were 61 respondents who answered the questionnaire. Collected results were analysed using mix of qualitative and quantitative methods. Analysis showed that international brands make adjustments of shop window displays in Saudi Arabia. To add more, and most important, local consumers are willing to have more internationalised shop window displays with less cultural adaptation. / Program: Master programme in Fashion Management

Idag är konsumentmarknaden inne i en globaliseringsfas som ständigt växer. Marknader har idag öppnat upp sig, och hela världen tar del av den internationella handeln. Det pågår även en tydlig förändring i konsumentbeteendet världen över, då informationsutbytet nu når ut till hela världen. Konsumenter nöjer sig inte bara med den standard som erbjuds på nära håll utan det specifika behovet har gjort att tillverkningen av varor och produkturvalet idag är enormt stort och tidsödande att välja mellan.Företag kommunicerar med olika typer av påverkan exempelvis, direktreklam och varumärkesannonser för att nå ut till sin målgrupp. Samtidigt som urvalet av produkter och tjänster växer sig allt större, tenderar varumärkesutbudet att bli något mindre då allt starkare internationella aktörer etablerar sig på den globala marknaden, och köper upp eller konkurrerar ut nationella aktörer på marknader världen över. Kina är ett av världens största länder. Den kinesiska ekonomin förväntas ta över platsen som världens största ekonomi ifrån USA till år 2025. Den kinesiska marknaden erbjuder goda tillväxtmöjligheter genom tillgången till de miljontals potentiella kunder i rätt målgrupp som landet har att erbjuda. Vilka möjligheter har Kinesiska varumärken att etablera sig på de västerländska marknaderna och konkurrera mot västerländska varumärken på deras hemmaplan?Uppsatsen syftar till att undersöka hur svenska konsumenter låter sig påverkas av varumärkesursprung och tillverkningsland, samt vilka attityder som råder bland svenska konsumenter för det kinesiska sport och streetwear varumärket Li-Ning. Uppsatsen ämnar även undersöka hur Li-Ning kan bygga upp sin marknadskommunikation för att på bästa sätt bygga upp positiva attityder hos svenska konsumenter. Två empiriska studier utfördes i syftet att mäta konsumenters attityder om tillverkning och ursprungsland. Enkätundersökningens resultat visar att konsumenter helst väljer svenska eller amerikanska varumärken framför kinesiska och att ursprungsland och tillverkningsland spelar mindre roll under produktevalueringen. Resultatet från fokusgruppintervjun visar att det redan från början finns negativa associationer om landet Kina i jämförelse med Sverige och USA.Genom studien har följande slutsatser framkommit. En produkts varumärkesursprung influerar undermedvetet konsumenternas produktevaluering innan ett inköp görs. Varumärkesursprunget betydelse bidrar till fallföretaget Li-Nings svaga varumärkesstyrka på den svenska marknaden. Generellt har svenska konsumenter en negativ attityd gentemot kinesiska varumärken och en bristande tillit till kinesiska företags ansvarstagande. Dock finns det möjligheter för Li-Ning att, genom väl utformad marknadskommunikation, påverka de konsumenter vars negativa attityder inte är alltför djupt inrotade. Svenska konsumenter uppfattar marknadsföringsformen storytelling som förtroendegivande, något som Li-Ning med fördel kan dra nytta av. Det är även viktigt att Li-Ning på inget vis ämnar dölja sitt ursprung utan använder det som en differentieringsfaktor.Today the consumer market has entered a phase of globalization that is constantly growing. Markets have now opened up and the whole world takes part in the international trade. There is also an obvious change in consumer behavior around the world, where information now can be shared throughout the entire globe. Consumers today does not settle with the product standard offered at close range, the specific consumer needs has led to that the production of goods and product ranges is vast and time consuming to choose from. Companies communicate with various types of marketing such as, advertising and direct mail to reach their target audience. While the selection of products and services are growing, the range of brands tend to decrease as strong international players establish themselves in the global market, and compete with local participants in markets worldwide. China is one of the world's largest countries. The Chinese economy is expected to take over the position as the world's largest economy from the U.S. in 2025. The Chinese market offers good growth potential for companies by providing access to millions of potential customers in the desired target group. Can Chinese brands establish themselves on the Western markets and compete against western brands on their home ground?This paper aims to examine how Swedish consumers allow themselves to be influenced by country of origin and country of manufacture, as well as the attitudes prevailing among Swedish consumers for the Chinese sports and street wear brand Li-Ning. The essay will also examine how Li-Ning can design their market communication in the best way to build positive attitudes among Swedish consumers. Two empirical studies were conducted with the aim of measuring consumer attitudes and country of origin effects.The results of the questionnaire survey showed that consumers preferred Swedish or American brands before Chinese brands and that country of origin and country of manufacture aren’t important factors when evaluating product options. The focus group interview shows that Swedish consumers have negative associations towards the country of China in comparison with Sweden and the United States. Through the study the following conclusions have been drawn. A product's country of origin subconsciously influences consumer’s product-assessments before a purchase is made. The Country of Origin-effect contributes to Li-Ning’s weak brand equity in the Swedish market. In general, Swedish consumers have a negative attitude toward Chinese brands and a lack of trust in the Chinese companies’ social responsibilities. However, there are opportunities for Li-Ning to affect the consumers whose negative attitudes aren’t too deeply entrenched through well-designed marketing communication. Swedish consumers perceive storytelling as a trustworthy form of marketing. This is something that Li-Ning can take advantage of. It’s also important that Li-Ning in no way intends to conceal its origin, but instead uses it as a differentiating factor. / Program: Textilekonomutbildningen