The country of origin effect on consumer purchase intention: PLS modelling

This study sets to find out the mediating effect of country of origin between the four constructs namely reputation, trust, ethnocentrism, quality and consumers' purchase intention. Four of the five predictors play a significant role at varying degrees at varying degree on consumer purchase intention. To examine this further, data was collected from 150 respondents through purposive sampling method using a questionnaire. The proposed model was tested with the help of PLS structural equation modelling and other relevant statistical tools. The study emphasised the fact that all predictor variables except ethnocentrism have a significant impact on consumer purchase intention. In the presence of mediation, reputation and ethnocentrism had no impact on purchase intention. This study will contribute significantly to the existing research and further help to understand the consumer perceptions to improve the marketing strategies. The proposed model will enhance the strategy formulation process of various organisations by designing sustainable models of customer acquisition and retention strategies. The limitation of the study was its limited focus on the above variables, and its narrow focus on the younger age group.