Loyalty Created in a High Involvement Product Category
LoyaltyInvolvementCustomer Loyalty ClubFemale ConsumersIKEA FAMILYManagement of enterprisesFöretagsledningManagementBusiness and Economics
The research aims at revealing consumers? loyalty to a high involvement product category, connected to a loyalty membership club. Hence, the study aims at explaining similarities and differences between two markets, differently developed in terms of loyalty clubs. The study used IKEA, its loyalty club IKEA FAMILY and women as the company?s main target group, in a case format to study loyalty membership clubs. Further, the research has an investigating and explanatory qualitative approach, gathering the empirical data through observations and in-depth telephone interviews. Existing theories within shopping behaviour, decision making, involvement and loyalty were used as a foundation for validating empirical data as well as development of future theory. In order to collect the empirical data needed, observations and in-depth interviews were conducted with six women in two different consumer markets where loyalty membership clubs are connected to a high involvement product category. The research indicates that existing theories may to some extent explain the loyalty created towards a high involvement product category, connected to a loyalty program on a market where loyalty memberships are rare. Thus, in order to describe the same phenomenon on markets with different characteristics the theories have been modified and may function as a springboard for future research.