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The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether consumers in pre-owned durable goods markets (such as pre-owned automobiles) purchase products with higher premium/luxury positioning in a vertical line-up compared to consumers in new durable goods markets. The moderating role of brand loyalty on choice is also investigated.

The hypotheses are tested using a data set that includes the sales of new and pre-owned vehicles from an independently owned automotive dealer in the Northwestern USA during the first nine months of 2017 (N = 200). An ordered logit regression is used to estimate the relationship between consumers’ purchase of pre-owned vs new vehicles and the premium-level of the model that they choose, while controlling for the vehicle price. Two experimental robustness tests are conducted to provide empirical evidence of the proposed theoretical process.

Consumers who purchased pre-owned vehicles chose models with higher premium/luxury positioning compared to consumers who purchased new vehicles, even when controlling for price. This effect was moderated by brand loyalty, such that consumers’ premium-level of purchase was magnified if they previously owned a vehicle of the same brand. The results of an experimental robustness test indicated that consumers’ preference for pre-owned vehicles with higher premium/luxury positioning was because of greater perceptions of the quality along the dimensions of versatility, performance and prestige.

Sellers of complex durable goods (e.g. automobiles) should consider segmenting their upselling strategies for pre-owned vs new products. They should specifically focus more effort on the upselling of pre-owned durables as buyers appear more likely to pursue premium/luxury alternatives compared to new durables. Further, they should focus upselling efforts for pre-owned durables on brand loyal consumers.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this work is the first to examine consumers’ desire for pre-owned durable goods with premium/luxury positioning in a vertical product line-up. Further, it is also the first to explore the role of brand loyalty in shaping consumer preferences for premium/luxury pre-owned durable goods. As such, it makes an important contribution to an emerging literature exploring the appeal of premium and luxury pre-owned goods. Much work in this area has focused on the motivations that consumers have for buying pre-owned premium and luxury nondurable goods, such as vintage clothing or accessories. By contrast, the present research investigates the appeal of premium/luxury positioning for complex, pre-owned durable goods (vehicles), which are more difficult for consumers to evaluate at the point-of-purchase.

The purpose of this paper is to identify opportunities and challenges for small- to medium-sized pre-owned fashion enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam. While recent studies have identified the growth of pre-owned fashion in developed economies, pre-owned clothing remains negatively associated by some consumers with overseas charity donations of second-hand clothes to Vietnam, following the economic upheaval of the 1980s.

Qualitative data were collected via semi-structured in-depth interviews with founders and/or owners of pre-owned fashion SMEs (n = 5, aged 25–40 years) with physical stores located in Ho Chi Minh City alongside online retail platforms. All interviewees are significant industry and consumer influencers.

Younger Vietnamese consumers are motivated by (1) pre-owned fashion's value for money compared to buying new western branded luxury items and (2) the ability of pre-owned and vintage fashion to allow the wearer to create a unique personal style. While Vietnamese consumers and retailers associate “sustainable fashion” with various, often unrelated concepts, the impact of global and local discourse around sustainable fashion in the last five years has generally supported wider interest in pre-owned fashion.

This study contributes to the relatively modest pool of English-language research on the fashion and textiles industry in Vietnam, a global fast-fashion manufacturing hub. The findings advance understanding of how pre-owned fashion is growing as a high-end niche market despite significant supply chain restrictions as well as a lingering perception of pre-owned fashion as charitable donations.

This study explores reasons for and against secondhand luxury (SHL) fashion adoption among young consumers in an emerging nation, India. As a trend, SHL has witnessed tremendous growth in the past few years, but scholarly interest remains scant.

Drawing from an interpretivist paradigm, this study uses an exploratory qualitative approach with 26 semi-structured interviews with SHL buyers, analyzed using NVivo software.

The findings shed significant light on value drivers and find support for status value, uniqueness value, quality value and monetary value, while adding the role of emotional value in reasons for SHL adoption. The results reveal an interesting trait of Indian consumers: price, fashion and celebrity association outweigh sustainability concerns, where an attitude–behavior gap is observed. Also, the findings add depth to risk perceptions as a major reason against SHL adoption.

While most existing studies have only focused on the motivational drivers, this study offers in-depth insights into the growing SHL literature by drawing attention to the enablers and equally important inhibitors by applying the novel Behavioral Reasoning Theory. It also intends to enhance practitioner knowledge in understanding a culturally diverse market and developing strategies relevant to a new set of consumers. The study calls for SHL retailers to sensitize young consumers in India about the sustainability aspect of SHL consumption, which is currently less appreciated.

Buying secondhand clothing is not only interesting for consumers wanting to save money but also for sustainable clothing enthusiasts. It is now among a number of consumption practices which slow down fast fashion production while saving 10 to 20 times the energy (Fletcher, 2008, p. 100). While most of the recent scholarly work focuses on secondhand consumers (Bianchi & Birtwistle, 2010; Franklin, 2011; Norum, 2015), this paper aims to examine business activities. This perspective from economic anthropology enhances understandings of secondhand clothing, as research to-date has tended to neglect the semiotic function of clothing while underlining exchanges. To gain insight into the dynamics of the sector in Germany today, two businesses from Hamburg have been ethnographically examined by the author since 2014. This study outlines their work practices and explains the development of this high-end segment of the market from the 1970s until the digital age. For businesses, the digitalization of the trade has had massive effects on their business practice because it seems to solve inherent problems connected to the selling of pre-owned clothing. I argue that the digitalization did not only promote acceptance of buying secondhand clothing in Germany but also the emergence of new businesses models.

Students are exposed to debt and equity financing; analysis of company affairs using selected financial statement information; use of ratios in financial analysis; the impact of adequate financing on company performance; and trade-offs companies must make in their day-to-day operations.

Jetcon Corporation’s business model involved the importation of pre-owned cars from Japan for re-sale in Jamaica. It was a fiercely competitive business as there were over 100 companies involved in this sector. There was also a vibrant new-car sector. Jetcon focused on importing mid to low price Japanese pre-owned models, which were already common on Jamaican roads, and which would be affordable to the larger segment of buyers. Like most small businesses, it experienced difficulty raising financing in the amounts and cost that is required and this contributed to its decision to raise equity capital through an initial public offer. It was the first used-car dealer to list on the Jamaica Stock Exchange.

This case is suitable for final-year undergraduate students in finance. By that time they should already have been exposed to debt, equity and stock markets. It helps students to explore some of the issues involved in financing a company’s operations.

Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

This work aims to discuss the motivators for the consumption of pre-loved luxury items and verify how these motivators interact, leading consumers to engage in behaviors that blend the characteristics of different motivators: treasure hunting, bargain hunting and individuality seeking.

This is an exploratory dyadic qualitative research conducted using semi-structured in-depth interviews involving luxury brand store managers and loyal clients for pre-loved luxury products in Monaco.

Throughout the analysis, the authors found three types of behavior that incorporate different parts of motivators that have been considered as specific motivators for pre-loved luxury consumption: bargain hunting, an intersection of recreational and economic motivations, treasure hunting, a blend of nostalgic and recreational motivations, and individuality, a mix of need for uniqueness and fashion involvement motivation.

Identifying three types of behavior for the pre-loved luxury consumer helps practitioners craft marketing strategies for their brands and products in the pre-loved luxury market.

The authors propose a theoretical framework that identifies intersections between the motivators for pre-loved luxury consumption, potentially identifying new types of consumer behavior in this market.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first work to discuss these three types of behavior in the pre-loved luxury market. The authors propose a theoretical framework that identifies intersections between the motivators for pre-loved luxury consumption, potentially identifying new types of consumer behavior in this market.