Consumer behavior toward foreign versus domestic branded cosmetics: A case study in Shenzhen, China

The Chinese economy has increased rapidly since the economic reform and open door policy in 1978. Chinese consumers can now afford to spend more of their disposable income, which will increase the number of Chinese consumers using cosmetic products. This provides a huge potential consumer cosmetic market for foreign and domestic cosmetic manufacturers. The cause of this growth-phenomenon inspired research is to determine which factors influence Chinese consumers’ intention to purchase foreign brand cosmetic products. The application of this quantitative correlational research provides an understanding of Chinese consumers’ attitudes, and their perception of quality and price of the foreign branded cosmetics. The population of this quantitative study was Chinese consumers over the age of 18 who were living and working in Shenzhen city and purchased or used cosmetic product. A total of 1,290 Chinese cosmetic consumers agreed to participate in the study, however only 802 (or 62.17%) participants returned the survey questionnaires. Through the responses and statistical analysis (the p value is smaller than the significance level (or alpha level) of 0.05), the researcher identified that demographic factors influence consumers’ loyal behavior and consumers accept that foreign brand cosmetic product is suitable for Guanxi gifts and can enhance their social status (p = 0.03,). The responses indicated that consumers’ perceived quality and price of foreign brand cosmetic product is highly correlated with the subjective norm (p = 0.005). Both Chinese loyal consumers and switching consumers perceive the quality of foreign brand cosmetic product as better than local brand cosmetic product and are willing to pay more for foreign brand cosmetic product (p = 0.001). The study results may provide insight for marketers and leaders of cosmetic firms for creating an effective strategy for retaining current customers and capturing potential customers in China market.