• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.90-103
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• 2024

The advancement of information and communication technologies has led to the rise of social media, giving rise to a new type of celebrity known as the "social media influencer". Social media influencers exert their influence not only by promoting products for various companies and brands but also by launching their own businesses. In other words, influencers leverage their credibility to create value in multiple markets as human brands, based on their unique characteristics and diverse images. Nowadays, social media influencers have become a type of human brand, supported by followers who enthusiastically engage in the influencers' businesses, a phenomenon also known as social shopping. Based on the human brand theory and doppelgänger effects, this study aims to investigate the impact of influencers' credibility, specifically their expertise, trustworthiness, and attractiveness on consumers' social shopping behaviors. Additionally, it examines the influence of consumers' desire to imitate influencers on their social shopping behaviors. A survey conducted with 300 female social media users revealed that trustworthiness and attractiveness significantly influenced imitation intentions and social shopping behaviors, while expertise did not show significant effects. Furthermore, imitation intentions had a significant impact on social shopping behaviors. These findings suggest that the attributes consumers perceive in influencers as human brands evoke a desire to imitate them, ultimately leading to social shopping behaviors.