The economic influence on the consumer behavior of luxury fashion goods in Lebanon

Abstract

The main purpose of this thesis was to discover whether the Lebanese economy and its crisis affected the buying behavior of luxury fashion goods such as Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Burberry etc. The theoretical framework of the thesis discusses the position of consumer behavior of the individual and the society as a whole, the change in consumer behavior and its impact on general and luxury consumption, the change in consumer behavior on the economic level and in relation to the economic situation of Lebanon. The research used in this thesis is quantitative, and it was conducted with an online questionnaire with 14 questions that studied consumers' attitudes and behaviors. The responses were collected by distributing the questionnaire to people in different age groups. 3 Lebanese representatives found 137 respondents in categories 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, and over 70 years old; the author was responsible for collecting responses in categories below 20 and 20-29 years old. The results of the research indicate that the majority of Lebanese have reduced their consumption or do not buy luxury fashion goods at all due to the economic situation in Lebanon. This is explained specifically by the rise in living costs, the rise in prices, the decrease in personal incomes, and the uncertainty of the economy. Also, the results indicate that the economic crisis of Lebanon encouraged consumers to switch their interests from buying socially approved to affordable, long-lasting, and high-quality or unique luxury fashion products.