Offline and online

Besides CE types that either take place offline or online, some CE types are identified, which cannot be clearly assigned to one of these two categories, as they can occur in both areas.

One of the most prominent and – following the customer’s perspective – obvious types of CE in this category is thereby the purchase of products from LFBs. This takes place both, offline in e.g. the store and online on the website, or via Instagram ads. Most participants describe the purchase of LFBs as a rather special experience which rarely takes place.

There’s obviously your purchasing stuff. Like if you purchase things in the store, if you pur-chase things on their website. You purpur-chase things via their Instagram channels, if they have any. (Int. 3)

The last time I consumed something. (…) I was actually in China and I ordered something on Vestiaire Collective, you know, vintage, yeah, online shop, and I ordered a pair Givenchy boots. (Int. 5)

So, I bought a super expensive sweater having this huge spraying and a huge image picture on the back. (Int. 7)

I don’t consume (…) luxury fashion products very, very often. But I have a few pieces and every single piece represents something for me, so good and bad. (Int. 9)

Contacting LFBs is mentioned as a further type, which is oftentimes paired with the purchase of products, whereby participants refer to going back to the LFB’s store but also to reaching out via e-mail and telephone.

I got a business card with which I receive an annual cleaning service for my bag for free. So, I will be in contact with the brand at least once a year. (Int. 4)

Talking to someone from customer service. (Int. 10)

Another highly prominent type of CE with LFBs is researching, which is represented amongst nearly all participants. In this regard, different kinds of and purposes related to such researching become apparent. There is a general interest in keeping up to date with the latest news within the luxury fashion industry.

I do like to have knowledge in the fashion luxury industry. So, when there’s a new brand, I always try to follow the new brand. (Int. 9)

Regarding the different kinds of research, two kinds emerge amongst the participants, namely brand- and product related research. The first refers to researching about the brand in general, which is mostly due to the general interest in the brand.

I especially like it when you have to inform yourself about brands because the fashion house is not directly printed on products. I am very interested in this minimalistic, timeless and understatement that many luxury brands have. (Int. 4)

Reading in blogs about the brands. (Int. 6)

Aligned with such brand research is researching for the brand’s history and gaining information about the development of the LFB over time. In the same regard, the research takes place, in order to gather information about the respective designers.

I really looked up the history and the brand and like the brand origin and everything about the brand. (Int. 5)

So, for example, like what I did was reading, reading stuff about the brand like a biography of the designer, or taking a look at the history like doing research on the brand to me is engagement with the brand. (Int. 7)

What I also find very exciting, for example, is the change of design houses. So, if a Head of Design changes now, and how the style changes then. (…) I’d say that it started with 15 or 16. When I found the topic interesting, I started to get deeply involved with fashion and was also interested in designers and their biographies. I got in touch with Coco Chanel for exam-ple and got to know the whole socio-cultural background. (Int. 4)

Speaking of Off-White again, I really was a fan of the brand, so I have read the whole Wik-ipedia article about Virgil Abloh. I have read many newspaper articles. Because I found his, like, whole career path, pretty interesting. From an architect graduate to like, like a fashion giant, so to say. (Int. 6)

I read about the chef designer. (Int. 7)

With regard to product-related research, participants research, in order to keep themselves updated with e.g. the newest collections, which is shown by quotes such as the following.

And I saw that there is a new collection and that there is something new. And I definitely noticed that I don’t know, fall or winter is coming out right now and then I looked it up online to see when the exact date and time is and then I streamed the show and clicked through the collection. (Int. 14)

In this product context, participants rather conduct general research, e.g. by informing themselves about the LFB’s production processes and their supply chain.

To really like, look up everything to look at the products and what it costs, the sizes like can I get it? (Int. 5)

So, I was looking towards like, okay, where did they get their materials? Is it Swiss? Like, is it really? Or is it like, they get their stuff from China and then they build it, you know, Swit-zerland? (Int. 3)

But yeah, I think it’s interesting to see their process and this is why sometimes, I’m trying to go deeper into that information. (…) And in terms of supply chain, how are like materials they are using, where they are producing, because they are often communicating about, you know, made in Europe, which for them is then like… it justifies a higher price rather than just made in China. (…) I like to see the process and the development of those brands. It’s really inter-esting to see their shift in this industry. So, in that case, I like to inform myself about that. (Int.

10)

Or if you simply find out about the brand online, what it stands for, how sustainable the pro-duction processes are. (Int. 11)

The focus of the research can be on a specific brand, whereby participants look at different product categories of the same brand. However, sometimes, the focus is also put on a specific product, which is then researched by looking at different brands, in order to gain an overview and to make compari-sons.

It was my Chloé bag, I have looked online for Chloé bags actually for around a year. (Int. 12) Yeah, I’ve been looking at watches. I’m gonna say for like the past year. You know, before I bought it in February and that was only because I wanted to just buy myself a watch. A really nice watch. So, I was looking at like, TAG Heuer, and I was even looking at Rolex, I was looking at, like, obviously Tissot. (Int. 3)

In addition to that, researching is carried out in the way that it serves as a preparation for the purchase.

And you look at the product for many, many months or many years and you know much more about certain products and about the brands. You know much more than about other pur-chases. So, you are much more informed. (Int. 4)

I mean, I go to the store. I guess almost every time I would do that, I would also like browsing around in the Internet beforehand. Um, or at least I have in mind before what I want to look for. So, I usually look up online before I purchase. (Int. 12)

Furthermore, researching becomes apparent in the career-related context. In this regard, the partici-pants either show general interest in the business of LFBs or are particularly interested in opportuni-ties with regard to their own career.

I also find the whole business side very interesting. (Int. 4)

I was in a job process for Louis Vuitton (…). So, I looked for jobs in different luxury fashion stores and ended up in a process with Louis Vuitton, so, I was there in their store. Talked with a lot of people and I was actually in three interviews before Corona. So that was the last time I was engaged with an LFB. (Int. 5)

Yes, especially right now because I actually really would like to work for a luxury fashion brand. So, that’s definitely something I spent a lot of time thinking about lately. (…) I’m look-ing for a like to work within the luxury fashion industry, I also follow some brands on LinkedIn for instance and then like see different aspects of their activities. (Int. 8)

So, for me, I want to work in the luxury fashion industry when I’ll be older. So, it’s kind of a way of revising my work, when I read newsletters, and when I can speak about it with my friends. (Int. 9)

Lastly, word of mouth (WoM) oftentimes takes place as a type of CE. In this regard, it is mainly referred to telling friends about an LFB or specific products.

By telling your friends like, hey, I love this bag. Like you should buy it, too. That’s technically engaging with a brand. (Int. 3)

Such WoM is thereby often related to the buying process itself: It takes place in advance by gathering information from friends and/ or post-purchase to share the experience with them.

Ask you friends, whether they have bought something from the brand. (Int. 6)

Yeah, so I will always before buying something really expensive, I think I actually always talk with a friend or a family member about the big purchase beforehand. (Int. 12)

I think especially when it comes to the buying process, I like to share how I felt about it, and what the service is like. What kind of service you get after the purchase, in my case I share information about Celine regarding their care and maintenance service and also about the contact with the sales personnel. (Int. 4)

I guess I told like some of my friends about it. I think like for my closest friends, they also want

Such WoM can also be found among the participants when it comes to exchanging and sharing their preferences for different LFBs. For most of the participants, who state to exchange about several LFB related topics, such CE type is carried out on a relatively high frequency.

I have some friends who tell me that… you know like many girls have like a dream product, a dream bag or whatever, that they would really like to have. And when I talk about these kinds of things with my friends, and they tell me about a brand or product, that’s definitely some-thing that increases my desire to engage with a brand. And it also really motivates me to actually go to the brand’s website or their Instagram and have a look. And in that way, I think it matters a lot what my peers think and definitely also influences the way that I would think about a brand. (Int. 8)

Because I am really into fashion brands, so usually, my friends, if they like a luxury fashion piece, they will send it to me, and I’ll give my opinion on it. (…) And the fact that we speak about it and that we have a big interest is a big thing. Because for me, the engagement with a fashion brand, it’s just not only being a loyal customer. It’s also talking about it, this whole word of mouth interacting. So just always be on point for the last news and talking about it.

(…) I do love talking about fashion. (Int. 9)