In order to grow and survive, a firm must create value with consumers in ways that both fit in with consumer demands and stand out from competitors. Focusing on and understanding consumer and firm assessments of value and creation of value has become a central scope in the contemporary strategic management and marketing literature for understanding and explaining firm survival and success. Consequently, the overall aim of this thesis is to provide a conceptually and empirically grounded understanding of consumers’ and managers’ value assessments and behavior in value creation. This thesis draws on a consumer experience perspective and theories on social construction, organizational identity, self-congruence, and the theory of attractive quality, and combines multiple qualitative and quantitative studies. The findings in this thesis shed light on the interplay between consumers, firms, and contextual structures in value creation. Contextual structural, cultural, and political forces are shown to affect and be affected by the shared and individual cognitions of value creation that firms and consumers use in their assessment and creation value. The results of the study enhance the understanding of how firms can adopt various strategic schemas or organizing logics to optimize different types of use value creation when choosing between opposing and contradictive demands in their value creation. Furthermore, the thesis provides a deeper understanding of the hierarchical nature of consumer judgments of value that can be used to enhance the effectiveness of firm prioritizations and as a foundation for future value-creating strategies.

The notion of community remains an important concern, for individuals, in urban planning practice, and more recently in consumer research. This thesis research explores community at the junction of these areas, through a grounded study of the consumption practices of a place based consumer tribe that exists within an inner city suburb undergoing urban renewal. The process of urban renewal is positioned as a means to revitalise under-utilised inner city areas, and broaden opportunities for city residents and visitors to experience an inner city lifestyle. It can also be seen as a standardising project that commodifies diversity and devalues existing communities and is associated with gentrification. Both perspectives can obscure the possibility that consumption practices can be used to build community like connections. This thesis applies a framework of literature from marketing and consumer research to an urban renewal context, to explore this area of ambiguity. The result of this exploration is a grounded theory of assuming a 'local' identity through consumption experiences in servicescapes. This thesis argues that consumers seek out individual servicescapes for the value experiences that they offer, which can be identity defining. In particular the interaction generated through these experiences can work to build tribal connections to, and within, that servicescape. These consumption experiences can also be used to make assumptions regarding the identity of others; both of the businesses themselves, and the individuals encountered within them. The tribal connections these experiences may generate can have individual benefits in that they can build into existing social networks, but through repetition and shared experiences, may also link an individual to a broader place based community. This thesis also proposes that servicescapes can work to encourage this process, by encouraging identity defining consumption experiences. Like individuals, businesses can come to be assumed to be tribe members and this 'localness' can become a symbolic operant resource that is valued by the tribe. As key sites in which members of the 'local' tribe reinforce their commitment to the tribe, locally owned businesses may benefit by being more likely to be chosen over their 'non-local' competitors. However, as an element of their tribal membership these businesses have a moral responsibility to reinforce the collective ethic of the tribe and assist in integrating new tribe members. In this way they can become ambassadors for the identity of the community, communicating the shared values of the tribe to members and non-members alike. Such a place based tribe is primarily based on public interaction, thus the servicescapes and public spaces that link them can come to work as a theatre in which the tribe is manifested and its rituals performed. As the experience of a sense of shared value is repeated across a range of geographically united servicescapes, this shared experience can be displaced from any one servicescape and generalised into a localness experience that is grounded within the geographic community. It is here that the physical and ideological aspects of the community combine, and the experienced value of a shared identity that originated in a servicescape based consumption experience can come to symbolise the values of the greater community itself. These research findings have implications for inner city urban renewal developments, suggesting that the increased availability of consumption activities that are associated with urban renewal may also be considered as an increased opportunity to build place based consumer tribes. This thesis proposes ways of encouraging this process.

Att hyra kläder är ett fenomen som fått ökat intresse de senaste åren. Inte minst i forskningen där det visat sig komma med miljömässiga fördelar. Kläduthyrning är en form av cirkulär ekonomi och ett svar på textilindustrins negativa miljöpåverkan och dess linjära arbetssätt. Trots vetskapen om dessa existerar fortfarande en stor efterfrågan av nyproducerat mode, varför kläduthyrning kan vara ett hållbarare sätt att uppfylla konsumenternas behov att förnya sig. Syftet med studien är att öka förståelsen för hur konsumenter upplever kollektiv konsumtion, specifikt kläduthyrning. Med dess kvalitativa karaktär identifieras upplevda fördelar respektive nackdelar hos konsumenten samt skillnader och likheter mellan beprövade hyrkoncept. Datainsamlingen baserades på tolv semistrukturerade intervjuer med konsumenter som har erfarenhet av att hyra kläder. Respondenternas svar har analyserats genom Social Exchange Theory (SET) och sedan kategoriserats in i olika teman. Den teoretiska modellen har även stått som grund för att förstå hur konsumenterna väger fördelar och nackdelar mot varandra i valet att hyra kläder. Genom studiens identifierade teman kunde även upplevda skillnader och likheter mellan koncepten konstateras samt användas som underlag för att förstå varför konsumenterna upplever dessa olika. Utifrån respondenternas svar identifierades fem olika uthyrningsmodeller. Genom attapplicera SET urskiljdes sex hedonistiska respektive sex utilitariska motiv samt att tillit och låg risk var faktorer som spelade in. Studien kom även fram till en modifierad version av SET vilken indikerar att vissa faktorer väger tyngre än andra. Flera utilitariska faktorer sam tupplevd risk visade sig vara mer avgörande trots att konsumenterna upplevde fler fördelar gentemot nackdelar. Resultatet visade också att när konsumenter väl provat att hyra kläder är inställningen generellt positiv. Denna studie bidrar därför till en bredare kunskap om kollektiv konsumtion och affärsmodeller inom kläduthyrning. Studien kan även vara användbar i vidare forskning samt för utveckling av branschen och liknande affärsmodeller. Uppsatsens presenteras på svenska. / Renting clothes is a phenomenon that has gained increased interest in recent years, not least in the research field where one has discovered environmental benefits. Clothing rentals are part of the circular economy and is a response to the negative environmental impact caused by the linear way of working in the textile industry. Despite this knowledge, there is still a high demand for newly produced fashion. Thus, renting clothes can be a way of fulfilling consumer needs to renew themselves with less negative environmental impact. The purpose of this study is to gain further understanding of how consumers experience collaborative consumption, specifically clothing rental. With its qualitative nature, this study identifies consumers perceived advantages and disadvantages as well as differences and similarities between rental models. By conducting twelve semi-structured interviews with experienced consumers data was collected. Through the lens of Social Exchange Theory (SET), the respondents’ answers could be categorized in to different themes. The theory also worked as a tool to analyze how consumers weigh perceived advantages and disadvantages when choosing whether or not to use a rental service. Through the identified themes, perceived differences and similarities between various rental services could be determined and used as a basis for understanding why consumers experience the concepts differently. Based on the answers of the respondents’, five different rental models were identified. By applying SET six hedonistic and six utilitarian motives was found. In addition, trust and reduced risk were important factors in the consumers decision. The research also resulted in a modified version of SET that implies that some factors weight heavier than others. Several of the utilitarian motives as well as perceived risk were more decisive, despite the fact that consumers experienced more advantages than disadvantages. The result also showed that once consumers have experienced the concept of renting clothes, their attitude is generally positive. Therefore, this study contributes to deeper knowledge about collaborative consumption and business models based on clothing rental. It can also be useful in further research as well as for the development of the industry and similar business models. This report is presented in Swedish.

Previous research shows that new strategies are currently needed to reach consumers on an emotional level. Theories claim that sensory marketing is the most effective method for companies to achieve customer loyalty and profitability. The five senses have proven to be useful in hotels, but there are a few studies that explain how these sensory strategies can be applied in real cases. The purpose of this essay is thus to gain a better understanding of how hotels with the help of sensory marketing can create a valuable encounter.  The empirical material is based on nine interviews with various hotels in Kalmar County where the respondents were asked to answer thirteen questions that include sensory marketing, service management and brand image.The results show that sensory marketing isn't a conscious strategy used by hotels. There is therefore no greater thought about how they use the senses, but more about their own intentions and what they think appeals to the consumers. One reason why hotels don't use this strategy may be due to a lack of knowledge but also other priorities of strategies. This study has been based on a company perspective where hotels have a large customer focus. There is a constant discussion about what the hotels consider is appealing to the guest, therefore the interest thus ends up in what consumers consider to be a valuable experience. A supplementary study from the consumer perspective could have confirmed the question marks that currently cannot be answered without the consumer's voice.

Pinterest is one of the fastest growing social networking sites and is attracting the interest of retailers as an effective way to interact with consumers. The purpose of this study was to examine: 1) determinants and impacts of Pinterest consumer experiences. Specifically, this study examined the impacts of retailer reputation, trust, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness on Pinterest consumer experiences on retailer SNS. 2) To identify the impacts of Pinterest consumer experiences on consumer satisfaction, behavioral intention, and online retailer relationship. The instrument used existing scales drawn from the literature. A consumer panel (n = 300) of Pinterest users that connect to apparel retailers was used to collect data through an online consumer panel. Reputation is positively related to trust and to perceived ease of use. Perceived ease of use and usefulness significantly affected retailer Pinterest consumer experiences. The impact of Pinterest consumer experiences on satisfaction and behavior intention was positive and significant. Satisfaction and behavior intention also are significantly related to online retailer relationship. Results and business implications are discussed, as well are limitations and future research.

The purpose of this study is to explore online consumers' experiential response towards visual user-generated content in online shopping environments for fashion online shopping. The Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework has been widely used in online shopping environment studies to examine the effect of website attributes on online shoppers' internal affective and cognitive states, and shopping behaviour (Kawaf and Tagg, 2012). Recent literature in the field proposes a more holistic approach towards online experiences (e.g., Pentina, Amialchuk, and Taylor, 2011) which is conceptualise to mediate the relationship between website attributes and behavioural responses. Consumer experiences are considered to be a critical concept in consumer behaviour and marketing for understanding consumers and to create competitive advantage in online retailing (Schmitt, 2010). Building on existing online shopping environment research, the study conceptualises online experiences for fashion online. This study seeks to investigate online consumers' experiential responses (aesthetics, relational, emotional, Flow experience and interactivity) towards two visual user-generated stimulus: (1) Looks - photographs of individuals modelling their own fashion, and (2) Outfits - digital collages displaying an assortment of products centred around a theme. They are both features which have been created by community members in an online social shopping community, ASOS Fashion Finder. The context of this study was exploratory and utilised a mixed methods approach where 13 photo-elicited interviews (PEI) with female online shoppers of ASOS, aged 18-34, were conducted to identify and understand consumers' online experiential responses and online shopping intentions towards the two visual stimulus. Using the same sample criteria, an online survey with 555 responses was also conducted to measure and test relationships between consumers' experiential responses and shopping intentions. The results of this study provides insight to the experiential states of fashion online consumers for online retail marketing, and contributes knowledge to research literature and theory on online shopping environments and customer experiences.