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The purpose of this paper is to add to the literature concerning potential motivations that drive social networking sites (SNS) for fashion-related behaviors among millennial consumers using a Uses and Gratifications (U&G) perspective. Four SNS platforms – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter – were examined.

The study presents a mixed-methods approach to develop and test a motivations framework among millennial consumers that will lead to practical understanding of both the existence of and impact of different motivations for engaging in SNS.

Unique motivations appear to drive use of the four examined platforms. Results indicate that a broad set of common motivations for SNS use among millennial consumers who exhibit an interest in fashion can be determined. Further, the results indicate significant differences among motivations within the respective platform types. Lastly, the results reveal common factors among three or more SNS platforms: “Fashion,” “Connection,” “Following” and “Pictures.” The ‘Entertainment’ factor was common among two SNS platforms.

Limitations of the study are the limited sample and SNS selection. A broader representation of the millennial consumer behaviors would provide a more comprehensive picture of the motivations for using SNS platforms.

The study provides useful information for fashion marketers and researchers who can benefit from an updated understanding of SNS behaviors.

The study provides a relevant contribution to SNS research as well as understanding of millennial consumers. Additionally, it adds contribution to the U&G theory concerning new media platforms. It also delivers a replicable research design for other SNS platforms.

The purpose of this study is to identify US textile and apparel (TAP) products and categories that demonstrate export comparative advantage and their respective country destinations.

Revealed comparative advantage (RCA) and normalized revealed comparative advantage (NRCA) in the long term (1996-2016) and short term (2010-2016) using two-digit Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System codes (HS codes) provide an insight into export advantage of TAP products. Non-parametric rank correlation (i.e. Spearman rank correlation) tests consistency between RCA and NRCA. Subsequently, NRCA using four-digit HS codes identify textile sub-categories with export comparative advantage. Bilateral trade data identify export destinations for sub-categories that indicate US export comparative advantage in the short term.

Aggregated product-level comparison of RCA and NRCA ranking indicates a consistent positive correlation between the two indices. The disaggregated findings reveal cotton fiber HS5201, artificial filament tow HS5502, non-wovens HS5603, cotton yarn HS5205, carpet and other floor coverings HS5703 and worn clothing HS6309 as sources of US TAP export advantage.

This research provides a comprehensive, current analysis of the US competitive position within the TAP global environment. Incorporation of NRCA into the study’s design demonstrates the flexibility of this measure in a new industry context.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the realistic trade-offs young consumers make when evaluating luxury co-branding combinations based on signalling theory.

Conjoint analysis was employed to evaluate the relative impact of four major attributes (i.e. brand combinations, retail channels, uniqueness and price) on consumer desirability for luxury co-branding combinations. The data were analysed using desirability indices.

Brand combinations, uniqueness and price significantly impact consumer desirability of luxury co-branding combinations. The luxury brand and sportswear combination results in the highest desirability when price is more similar to the sportswear constituent and participants perceive that the collaboration as exclusive.

The results suggest that luxury brands need to consider the partnering brand's retail format primarily for co-branding strategy. Luxury brand collaborations with sportswear and premium priced streetwear brands are more likely to result in higher desirability among consumers compared to collaborations with fast fashion and mass-market brands. Additionally, uniqueness may not be effective as a point of differentiation in cases where luxury brands cannot guarantee a single yearly collaboration.

The decision to use existing brands for the fictitious combinations developed more sensible scenarios for respondents. In addition, rather than discrete questions, attribute-based combinations provide a more realistic depiction of consumers' decision making on luxury co-branding. Finally, the results provide marketing practitioners with practical directions for future development of fashion luxury co-branding strategy.

As the markets of Eastern Europe continue to liberalize, they are becoming increasingly important to Western retailers who seek international market opportunities. The current research compares consumer perceptions of price as a marketplace cue in Polish and US cultures. A hierarchical structural equation model (SEM) is used to assess the metric equivalence of price cue measures across a matched sample of Polish (N = 335) and US (N = 342) consumers. Results indicate a great deal of similarity between the two groups’ perceptions of price. Findings from the study suggest practical directions for strategy formulation as well as guidance in measuring perceptions of price cross‐culturally.

The study primarily aims to examine an emerging fashion technology, direct-to-garment (DTG) printing, using data mining-driven social network analysis (SNA). Simultaneously, the study also demonstrates application of a group novel computational technique to capture, analyze and visually depict data for strategic insight into the fashion industry.

A total of 5,060 tweets related to DTG were captured using Crimson Hexagon. Python and Gephi were applied to convert, calculate and visualize the yearly networks for 2016–2019. Based on graph theory, degree centrality and betweenness centrality indices guide interpretation of the outcome networks.

The findings reveal insights into DTG printing technology networks through identification of interrelated indicators (i.e. nodes, edges and communities) over time. Deeper interpretation of the dominant indicators and the unique changes within each of the DTG communities were investigated and discussed.

Three SNA models suggest directions including the dominant apparel categories for DTG application, competing alternatives for apparel decorating approaches to DTG and growing market niches for DTG. Interpretation of the yearly networks suggests evolution of this domain over the investigation period.

The social media based, data mining-driven SNA method provides a novel path and a powerful technique for scholars and practitioners to investigate information among complex, abstract or novel topics such as DTG. Context specific findings provide initial insight into the evolving competitive structures driving DTG in the fashion market.

As retailers in the discount sector proliferate into US retail markets their presence poses competitive challenges for all types of formats that vie for the same target consumer. Practitioners and academics traditionally characterize the discount consumer as one who seeks low‐cost goods and broad assortments. Yet, as US discounters have begun to differentiate their retail offerings, consumers appear to be responding to these initiatives, suggesting that they may seek value beyond low price in this context. The purpose of this paper is to identify the price cues used by consumers in the discount environment, segment these consumers based on their price cue usage, and describe the price segments in terms of store choice and demographics.

A telephone survey was used to gather a nation‐wide sample of US discount format shoppers (n=354). Confirmatory factor analysis is used to evaluate the price cue measures and K‐means cluster analysis is used to identify unique price cue segments. χ², analysis of variance and descriptive statistics are used to describe the price cue segments.

Four shopper segments are identified with distinct operations of the price cue, suggesting that discount shoppers seek more than low price in the discount environment. Differences in segments in terms of store choice, income and age emerge from the data.

The study provides understanding of the manner in which consumers perceive and act upon price, beyond low‐price and value, in the discount sector. The results suggest that popular wisdom regarding price and the US discount shopper is oversimplified, which may portend even greater opportunity for discounters and threat to their intra‐type competitors.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a suggested framework for improving the understanding of consumer receptiveness to incoming international retailers. The consumer perception of country of origin against consumer receptiveness index (CRI) is proposed as a method to explore the receptiveness of consumers in the host market to incoming international retailers.

This paper reviews the international retailing literature, highlighting the need for specific knowledge regarding consumer receptiveness to incoming international retailers. A method is proposed to explore how consumers in the host market respond to incoming international retail firms.

The literature review indicates that the majority of the extant work investigates the process from the perspective of the internationalising retailer, while consumer receptiveness to the international retailer has not been fully considered.

This paper does not present an empirical study. The consumer perception of country of origin against CRI is presented as a means to suggest and guide future research in the area.

The paper makes a practical contribution by suggesting a method to explore how consumers in the host country receive incoming international retailers.

This paper is unique because previous research has provided limited knowledge of consumer receptiveness to international retailers.

This paper aims to examine differences in generational perceptions of market cues related to price, quality and shopping enjoyment in the apparel retailing context.

A cross‐section of US apparel consumers (n=342) constitutes the sample for the study. Analysis of variance and multiple comparisons are used to investigate differences in market cue perception among US generational cohorts.

Results indicate significant differences in the cohorts in terms of their perception of quality related to country‐of‐origin, price consciousness, prestige sensitivity and shopping enjoyment.

The results should not be extrapolated to markets outside of the USA. Further, the sample characteristics should be considered for interpretation and application of the results for US markets.

The findings related to the market cues provide both operational and strategic direction for apparel marketers and retailers in terms of country‐of‐origin quality, pricing policy and managerial efforts to control the shopping experience.

The research expands upon the general research into US generational cohorts and consumer behavior by incorporating the entire social cycle within a single study: millennials, the thirteenth generation, the baby boomers and the silent generation.

The purpose of this paper is to profile the private label apparel consumer using demographic and behavioral predictors. The paper also aims to examine cross‐shopping behaviors among purchasers of private label apparel across the five top US private label apparel retailers.

Decision tree analysis is used to model the impacts of demographics and behaviors on private label purchasing. A secondary database (n=1,289) of US private label purchasers provides data for the analysis.

Findings indicate demographic predictors as important drivers of private label apparel purchase among retailers positioned as providers of value, while behavioral drivers are more common among patrons of retailers that are differentiated on service or brand. Cross‐shopping is more common among the retailers positioned on value.

The research design provides a profile of the private label consumer but does not explain why this consumer chooses private labels over national brands. The data‐mining approach provides an innovative tool for identifying the drivers of private label consumption. Future research should investigate these drivers more deeply, to establish a fuller understanding of this consumer. The sample is limited to US consumers.

Findings suggest that retailers positioned on value/low price need to differentiate private labels to deter cross‐shopping. Likewise, comparatively upscale retailers need to continue to be sensitive to the behavioral demands of their respective target market.

Results provide a profile of the private label consumer and offer insight into private label cross‐shopping using an innovative modeling approach that facilitates examination of actual purchase data.

IF no completely novel contribution to librarianship came out of the Eastbourne Conference, it could be justified as having to some extent integrated libraries and literature; for, in the choice of a scholar to address it in Dr. R. W. Moore on the underlying connexion of books and therefore libraries with life; and of our own ex‐President, Dr. Esdaile, to recreate the poetry of the first years of the century, no mistake was made. The technical and administrative matters always seem Ezekiel's valley of dry bones in such a setting, but there were really good papers, practical ones like the very controversial contribution of Mr. Corbett, the excellent hospital library paper by Miss Southerden and Mr. Lamb's experienced treatment of Commercial and Technical Libraries. Most members there, too, were old enough to appreciate the chronicle of 1919–49 offered by Mr. Stewart, and all received stimulation from Mr. L. R. McColvin's forecast of our future. There were too many papers for any one librarian to absorb, but the Library Association serves many interests today. Some impressions have been given in other pages from the writer of Letters on Our Affairs.