Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to study how the country of origin affects Swedish consumers when buying food products. Both from a product and brand perspective for the use of business leaders and marketers. Method: Qualitative study using focus groups Results: This study shows that country of origin of food products has a significant effect on Swedish consumers' purchasing decisions. The results show that countries' perceptions and stereotypes transcend into the product and brand. It also shows that Swedish consumers favorably buy domestic products over foreign in many cases.

No / This article investigates the relative importance and variability of the country-of-origin effect in employee relations approaches of US subsidiaries within the context of diversity of employee relations patterns in home- and host-country business systems and the influence of important industry forces. It is based on a representative survey of US subsidiaries and indigenous firms in the UK. The cross-sectional comparison with indigenous UK firms confirmed a distinct US country-of-origin imprint in employee relations patterns in US subsidiaries. However, the magnitude of such an effect cautions against assumptions of popular stereotypes and reflects, inter alia, the diversity of employee relations approaches among US parent companies as well as developments in the UK industrial relations landscape over the last decades. The intra-US analysis revealed the importance of both the level and type of industry internationalisation in shaping the strength and nature of the country-of-origin influence. On the basis of the findings, the article highlights lessons to be learned for the study of cross-border policy-transfer issues in MNCs.

No / In light of current changes in the German industrial relations¿ landscape and the wider and deeper integration of German multinationals into the world economy, this study investigates the relative importance of the country-of-origin effect in employee relations of German affiliates in an Anglo-American setting. The paper addresses important issues that relate to the wider international business domain. The comparative analysis to US affiliates in the UK and British owned firms points to a distinctively German flavored hybrid approach that integrates the best practice elements of the US model with the collective orientation of the German model. This bears a resemblance to an emerging trend in the parent companies¿ home locations. The intra-German analysis revealed that affiliates of multinationals that face pressures for international integration are at the forefront of this development. The findings suggest that this might provide a suitable model of international operation for multinationals from strongly institutionalized countries.

The focus of this study is the role and function of country of origin (COO) in the creation and communication of the brand identities of Scottish premium/luxury brands. It applies the identity concept which is well developed in the branding literature to the COO literature where the focus on the consumer perspective of country image has resulted in the area of origin management being underdeveloped. Recognising the paucity of COO literature which examines the mechanisms and processes used by luxury brands to communicate COO, these are also analysed. The study uses an innovative two stage sequential mixed methods research design. In the first stage, the macro perspective is gained from the analysis of a database of companies compiled specifically for the study covering six categories of Scottish premium/luxury brands. Additionally a postal survey and analysis of company web pages gather a mix of qualitative and quantitative data to examine the role of COO. The second stage gains strategic insights from semi structured interviews with business elites achieving in depth understanding of the decision making process regarding the strategic advantages of COO in brand identities. The value of the study lies in the contribution to knowledge from frameworks which identify: the characteristics which differentiate companies within and across luxury sectors and organisational structure models which reflect the dominant ownership structures in the Scottish food and beverage, textiles/cashmere and whisky sectors; the dimensions of Scottish premium/luxury brands across a range of product categories; the motivations and drivers for adopting a COO identity; the criteria which distinguish COO brands; the COO communication process. The importance of COO as a key differentiating device which conveys competitive advantage is developed using the metaphor of COO as the anchor which locates the brand in a place which evokes symbolic, emotional and psychological associations and provides the brand with protection and security.

Title: The Country-of-Origin Effect in the Personal Care Market  Level: Final assignment for Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration Author: Simon Andersson and Gustaf Persson Supervisor: Jonas Kågström Date: 2019 – January Aim: The study aims to analyse Swedish consumers’ perceptions on the Country-of-Origin effects regarding Chinese products. Method: The study is based on a quantitative method. The data collection was done with a questionnaire with a deductive approach. The empirical data was collected through a web survey which was published on social media e.g. Facebook and LinkedIn. The data was then processed in the statistical program IBM SPSS Statistics (SPSS) to form models, figures and values. A descriptive-, correlation-, factor- and cluster-analysis was then formed. Result & Conclusion: The results showed how different variables correlate, different factors which the variables were grouped in and five different clusters of respondents. The conclusion is that there is a so-called COO-effect for Swedish consumers subconsciously. Furthermore, Swedish consumers are aware of the origin, but rank other quality and price as higher cues. Contribution of the thesis: This study aims, with help of previous research and a conducted survey, examine how Swedish consumer perceptions of Chinese personal care products regarding the COO-effect. Furthermore, it provides information on how Swedish consumers ranks certain cues. The study is unique since it provides insight on a market that has not yet been analysed with regard to the COO effect (Sweden) and with a certain product group where there is no current research available in relation to COOeffects. Furthermore, the study contributes to general COO-research, with certain implications deriving from previous research. There are both theoretical and practical contributions of importance, illustrating Swedish consumer perceptions of Chinese products. Suggestions for future research: This essay is limited to the Swedish market and focused on a particular product group. There are several other products groups that are yet to be researched in regard to COO-effects/consumer perception. Further research could compare two different product groups with high involvement to analyse the difference between certain product types. A comparison between two (or more) different countries would provide a vertical view of COO-effects, analysing the differences between different consumer perceptions and what cultural variables that may be vital for purchasing decisions. Keywords: Country-of-origin (COO), Country-of-origin effects, Product evaluation, Cultural differences, Made in China, Consumer behaviour, Purchase decision, Trust / Titel: The Country-of-Origin Effect in the Personal Care Market  Nivå: Examensarbete på Grundnivå (kandidatexamen) i ämnet företagsekonomi Författare: Simon Andersson och Gustaf Persson Handledare: Jonas Kågström Datum: 2019 – Januari Syfte: Studien syftar att analysera svenska konsumenters uppfattning om effekterna av ursprungsland för kinesiska produkter. Metod: Studien baseras på en kvantitativ metod. Datainsamlingen skedde med en enkätundersökning som utgår från ett deduktivt synsätt. Empiriska data har samlats in via en webbenkät som publicerades på sociala medier som exempelvis Facebook och LinkedIn. Data behandlades i statistikprogrammet IBM SPSS Statistics (SPSS) för att få ut resultat; modeller, figurer och värden. Sedan utformades en deskriptiv analys, korrelationsanalys, faktoranalys och en klusteranalys. Resultat & slutsats: Resultatet uppvisade hur olika variabler korrelerar, olika faktorer som grupperar variabler samt fem olika kluster med respondenter. Vi kan dra slutsatsen att det finns en så kallad ”country-of-origin” (COO) -effekt som svenska konsumenter inte är medvetna om. Svenska konsumenter är medvetna om produktens ursprung, men rankar variablerna kvalitet och pris högre. Examensarbetets bidrag: Denna studie syftar till, att med hjälp av tidigare forskning och en genomförd undersökning, analysera svenska konsumenters uppfattning av kinesiska hälsoprodukter när det gäller COO-effekten. Dessutom ger den information om hur svenska konsumenter rankar olika variabler vid köp. Studien är unik eftersom den ger insikt om en marknad som ännu inte analyserats med avseende på COO-effekten och med en viss produktgrupp som det inte finns någon forskning om samband av COO-effekter. Studien kommer dessutom att bidra till generell COO-forskning, med vissa avvikelser som härrör från tidigare forskning. Det finns både teoretiska och praktiska bidrag av betydelse, som ger en inblick i svenska konsumenters uppfattning av kinesiska produkter. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Den här uppsatsen avgränsar sig till den svenska marknaden och riktade in sig på en särskild produktgrupp. Det finns flera andra produktgrupper som ännu inte undersöks med avseende på COO-effekter och dess inverkan på konsumenters uppfattning. Framtida forskning kan jämföra två olika produktgrupper för att analysera de skillnader som finns/inte finns. En jämförelse mellan två (eller flera) olika länder skulle ge en vertikal bild av COO-effekter och en sådan analys skulle öka förståelse för att förstå vilka kulturella skillnader som är avgörande i konsumentbeteende. Nyckelord: Country-of-origin (COO), Country-of-origin effects, Product evaluation, Cultural differences, Made in China, Consumer behaviour, Purchase decision, Trust

As companies are focused on and capable of creating brand images aimed at supporting their brands, some choose to strategically associate them with specific countries or regions in hopes of attaining perceivably higher consumer-based brand equity. Although such a strategy could prove itself effective in the sense of increasing the amount of positive consumer perceptions, it might also result in harmful effects if the marketed country-of-brand origin is not in congruence with the brand‟s other country-of-origin constructs.   With regards to what theory implies and what this study‟s results suggest, this thesis analyzes the effects of country-of-origin incongruence on consumer-based brand equity in the case of Lexington. What this thesis uncovers is that the country-of-origin incongruence of Lexington does not, contrary to theory, have negative consequences on its consumer-based brand equity. Yet, what is suggested is that further research should focus on whether these results are simply restricted to this study‟s exact settings or would be attained even in another setting in which consumer ethnocentrism would not play a significant role.

Country of origin (COO) effect is a well-researched topic in the international marketing literature. It is well recognized that consumers are biased against imports, due to consumer ethnocentrism or patriotism tendency. However, the research on COO effects also suggests that consumers form certain image of origin countries (COO image) and favorable image, be it associated with the countries, their people, or general product quality, improves the evaluation and acceptance of foreign imports. The publications related to COO effects which focus on consumer durables are abundant. However, the contrasting COO effects on food products are much less investigated. This study surveys British consumers’ preference for domestic versus imported beef. Like previous studies, a strong preference for domestic beef was found. Furthermore, individual characteristics which potentially influence such preference were examined. Using scores on consumer patriotism and COO image perception as interacting individual characteristics in the choice models, it was found that stronger preference against imports was linked to higher level of the respondents perceived patriotic sentiment toward their home country, while better COO image improved the likelihood of the foreign country’s beef being selected. Marketing and policy implications are discussed.

The Korean Wave has taken the world by storm and Korean beauty (K-beauty) has in extension to this become a global phenomena. K-beauty has reached this popularity with the help of authentic and natural ingredients and a combination between tradition and modernity creating a competitive advantage on the market. Despite this popularity a lack of research has been identified on how the “​Made in Korea”​ label affects consumer’s perception of Korean products and in specific K-beauty products. The current study addressed this opportunity in examining how consumers perceive K-beauty products in addition to country-of-origin affects their purchase intention. To examine this a qualitative approach was taken consisting of 11 email interviews with millennial women residing in Sweden. The empirical data derived from the interviews was divided into four themes (1) Made in Korea, (2) Image, (3) Quality and (4) Effect. The findings were then analyzed in regards to the country-of-origin effect (COE) and previous research on the topic. The results identify two main attributes as driving factors in consumer perception of K-beauty products on the Swedish market. These two attributes are image and quality. Korea was in this study found to carry a strong cognitive country image (CCI) and is as a result perceived to be on the forefront of the beauty industry creating an attraction towards Korean products. Although K-beauty is found to be driven by the CCI a connection to the Korean Wave and an affective country image (ACI) is found creating a separation in the country image. This was further found to suggest that the Korean Wave facilitates the spread of Korean culture through all Korean products. Future research directions are additionally discussed.

Svenska varumärken i allmänhet och svenska modevarumärken i synnerhet har en god ställning på den globala marknaden. Som en konsekvens av detta väljer flera svenska modeföretag att marknadsföra sina varumärken genom att betona sitt svenska ursprung. Detta är vad som inom marknadsföring benämns som Country-of-Origin. Utlandsarbete har tidigare associerats med negativa aspekter så som kulturella konflikter och anpassningsproblem, men även positivt betonade aspekter som ökad produktivitet och ökad nivå av kreativitet. Denna studie har som syfte att undersöka hur svenska modedesigners som arbetar utomlands påverkas i sitt arbete av att ha Sverige som ursprungsland. Studien undersöker om svenska modedesigners likt svenska modeföretag nyttjar sin ursprungslandsidentitet för att skapa framgångar, hur de påverkas av sitt ursprungsland i form av fördelar, nackdelar, förväntningar och fördomar, samt vilken uppfattning de har av innebörden av att lyckas med sitt arbete inom modedesignbranschen i utlandet. De teorier som studien utgår ifrån är Country-of-Origin, Kulturkapitalsteori samt Psychological Contract Theory. Studien utgår från kvalitativa intervjustudier där fem svenska modedesigners verksamma i fem olika länder besvarat intervjufrågor i både strukturerat och semi-strukturerat format. Efter analys av resultaten i förhållande till relevanta teorier och tidigare forskning kommer studien till slutsatsen att det inte finns någon delad tydlig syn mellan svenska modedesigners i utlandet gällande innebörden med att lyckas med sitt arbete, då en mängd olika faktorer både inom den direkta arbetsplatsen och utanför benämns som orsaker bakom ett lyckat arbete. Utöver detta nås slutsatsen att svenska modedesigners i utlandet inte aktivt anser sig använda sin ursprungslandsidentitet för att lyckas i sitt arbete, men att de upplever särskilda förväntningar samt vissa fördelar med att ha Sverige som ursprungsland. / Swedish brands in general and Swedish fashion brands in particular hold a strong position on the global market. As a result of this many Swedish fashion companies choose to market their brands by emphasizing their Swedish origin. This is commonly known as Country-of-Origin within the field of marketing. Working abroad has often been associated with negative aspects such as cultural conflicts and integration issues, but also positive aspects such as increased productivity and increased levels of creativity. The purpose of this study is to examine how Swedish fashion designers working abroad are impacted in their work by having Sweden as their country of origin. The study examines if Swedish fashion designers utilize their country of origin in a way alike Swedish fashion companies in order to establish success, how they are impacted by their country of origin in terms of benefits, disadvantages, expectations and stereotypes, and also how they perceive the meaning of the term success in terms of working abroad as a Swedish fashion designer. The study utilizes Country-of-Origin, Cultural Capital Theory as well as Psychological Contract Theory to construct its theoretical base. The study is based on qualitative interviews where five Swedish fashion designers working in five different countries answer questions in both a structured and a semi-structured format. After analyzing the results using relevant theories and previous research the conclusion that there is no unified and commonly agreed opinion of what constitutes success while working abroad as a Swedish fashion designer is reached. This is due to the fashion designers expressing a variety of different factors both within and outside of the direct workplace when defining success. In addition to this the conclusion that Swedish fashion designers abroad do not claim to actively utilize their country of origin in order to be successful in their work, and that they experience certain expectations and some benefits because of their country of origin is reached.

Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka de attityder som svenska och finländska konsumenter har beträffande ursprungslandsinformation, i synnerhet bilden av PIIGS-länderna. Teorierna i uppsatsen utgår ifrån Country of origin och dess effekter samt från tidigare forskning.Uppsatsen har en kvantitativ ansats där en enkätundersökning och statistiska beräkningar utförts. Slutsatserna i denna uppsats är att de svenska och finländska konsumenterna generellt inte tar hänsyn till ursprungslandsinformation. De påvisar även negativa attityder gentemotPIIGS-länderna gällande tillförlitlighet och produktkvalité i jämförelse med deras hemländer. / The purpose of this paper is to examine the attitudes that Swedish and Finnish consumers have regarding Country of origin information, in particular the image of the PIIGS countries.The theories in this essay are based on Country of origin and its effects as well as from previous conducted research. The essay has a quantitative approach in which a questionnaire and statistical calculations have been performed. The conclusions of this paper are that the Swedish and Finnish consumers generally do not take Country of origin information into account.They also show negative attitudes towards the PIIGS countries regarding reliability and product quality in comparison to their home countries.