Clothes make the man: the effect of wearing types on consumer self-confidence

Consumers engage with retail stores daily. When consumers experience discomfort (e.g., anxiety) in retail environments, wearing formal attire may improve their performance. Building on enclothed cognition theory, we examine the impact of clothing on consumer experience and behavior. We conducted four studies demonstrating that wearing formal attire enhanced consumers’ self-confidence, leading to increased engagement in shopping behaviors. Participants were more likely to engage further with products (Studies 1A and 1C) and communicate with store staff about products of interest (Study 1B) when wearing formal attire compared to casual clothing. The increase in shopping behaviors was mediated by consumer self-confidence (Studies 2 and 3). Furthermore, the clothing effect on shopping behaviors varied depending on situational factors, like store image, as demonstrated in Study 4. Specifically, consumers in formal dress exhibited higher self-confidence and increased shopping behaviors in the upscale store, while formal and casual dress had no significant effect in the downscale store. This research contributes novel insights into consumers’ psychological and behavioral responses to wearing and provides valuable guidance for store managers to nudge offline store sales.