Is Collaborative Consumption a Remedy to Sustainability? A Cross-Cultural Investigation on Branded Second-Hand Online Shopping

The advent of the Internet has facilitated the emergence of sustainable consumption where consumers can easily buy secondhand products through online platforms. Research on branded secondhand online shopping is scarce, and as a cross-cultural study, this research shows under what circumstances customers purchase branded secondhand products in online environment through websites and apps. A fuzzy TOPSIS was used on a set of factors by seven marketing professors to rank the most important variables associated with branded secondhand online shopping behaviour. Furthermore, to examine the customers' perspective on the extracted factors, this study used a survey approach from a sample of 261 Malaysian (Study 2) and 317 French (Study 3) branded secondhand online experienced shoppers. Covariance-based structural equation modelling was applied to assess the measurement, structural, and rival models. The results of Study 1 showed that need for uniqueness, price, brand involvement, brand nostalgia, and eco-consciousness were identified as main variables of branded secondhand online shopping behaviour. The findings of Study 2 and Study 3 indicate that price, eco-consciousness, and brand involvement are the main factors conducive to branded secondhand online shopping behaviour in both Malaysian and French samples. The results also imply that the need for uniqueness and brand nostalgia is not relevant to branded secondhand online shopping in both cultural settings. Multi-group analysis reveals that there are no differences across gender groups in both samples. The low price of branded secondhand products is more important for Malaysian online shoppers than their French counterparts. Interestingly, the type of store (apps vs. websites) implies that French app users are more committed to brands while French website users are more eco-conscious. This study suggests that tackling global warming challenges should be a bottom-up approach where consumers take action. Therefore, this research proposes branded secondhand online shopping behaviour as one of the small remedies to global warming and sustainable consumption behaviour. Electronic copy available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4133110 Keywords: Branded secondhand products; online shopping; sustainable shopping behaviour; cross-cultural study "Declarations of interest: none" Acknowledgement: