• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.559-575
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• 2021

The popularity of K-pop, the development of diverse media and communications, and rapid globalization are increasing consumers' attachment to celebrities. These celebrities, called "Human brand", have a growing impact on consumers. However, research on idol celebrities has been conducted mainly on teenagers. Furthermore, there are limits to the studies on consumers' attachment to idol celebrities who do not advertise specific products and intention to purchase products which are not advertised but related to the idol human brand. Therefore, this study has been conducted on 301 out of 400 adult women in their twenties to forties in Korea to examine the relationship between the characteristics of the idol human brand, attachment to the idol human brand, desire to imitate the idol human brand, desire to identify with the idol human brand and its fandom community, and the effect on purchase intention. For the statistical analysis, SPSS and AMOS were used. The study found that the characteristics of the idol human brand which are trust, professionality, social attractiveness, and physical attractiveness positively influenced attachment to the idol human brand. The attachment to the idol human brand positively affected the imitation desire toward the idol human brand, and the identification desire with the idol human brand, and to identify with its fandom community. Additionally, the desire to imitate and to identify with the idol human brand and its fandom community positively affected the intention. Furthermore, the relationships between all variables were found to have a significant mediating effect.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.479-495
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• 2019

This study defines Korean wave stars as Korean wave human brands and examines the influence of the characteristics, attachment, and self-congruity of the Korean wave human brand on brand equity. For this, this study surveyed Chinese female consumers in their 20s and 30s who consume many Korean wave products from May 2018 to June 2018. First, human brand characteristics, attachment, self-congruity, Korean wave aspiration level, and brand equity according to demographic characteristics were identified. Second, characteristics, attachment, self-congruity, and the aspiration level of the Korean wave human brand showed correlations with brand equity. However, brand awareness, a sub-factor of brand equity, does not show correlations with self-congruity. Third, characteristics, attachment, self-congruity, and Korean wave aspiration level had a positively influenced brand equity. Fourth, when looking into the mediated effect of attachment on brand equity, both human brand characteristics and self-congruity showed a partially mediated effect. Fifth, when analyzing the adjustment effect in the Korean wave aspiration level, a group with higher Korean wave aspiration level showed more correlations with attachment and brand equity. This study found that attachment and self congruity are important elements in forming human brand and brand equity. This study is significant in that it verified the influence of Korean wave brand power that has been on the rise recently on brand equity and provided a theoretical basis that has allowed researchers to determine that the characteristics, attachment, and self-congruity of Korean wave human brand significantly influence brand equity.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.537-550
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• 2023

This study investigates the impact of Hallyu human brands on consumer behavior, given the increasing influence of Hallyu human brands due to their global spread and the limited academic discussions surrounding this topic. The research examines the role of self-congruity, human brand attachment, and brand equity factors. An online survey was conducted, targeting Chinese consumers who are highly engaged with the Korean Wave. Data from 403 respondents were analyzed. The results reveal that both ideal and actual self-congruity with the Hallyu human brand significantly affected attachment to the brand, while social self-congruity was found to be insignificant. Furthermore, attachment to Hallyu human brands positively influenced brand recognition, perceived quality, brand image, and brand loyalty.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.22 no.10
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• pp.291-308
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to suggest an effective marketing method for product advertising. With regards to this, 148 copies of survey data were collected from consumers, and the hypothesis of this study was verified using SPSS 25.0. The results revealed that (1) Human Brand attractiveness had a positive effect on Human Brand attachment among the products of low involvement. (2) The uniqueness and the intimacy of Human Brand had a positive effect on Human Brand attachment among the products of high involvement. Through this study, the effect of reliability, expertise, attractiveness, uniqueness, and intimacy among human brand characteristics on human brand attachment, human brand attitude, and product purchase intention was confirmed, and it was also possible to confirm the difference in influence on human brand characteristics and purchase intention according to the product characteristics involved. This study has expanded the research scope of Human Brand, which has been studied mainly by entertainers and entrepreneurs, to sports stars and through empirical analysis, it has tried to identify influencing factors to improve purchasing intent based on high and low-contention characteristics of advertising products.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.18 no.10
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• pp.5-14
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• 2020

Purpose: Early morning delivery markets have grown exponentially in the last few years. This study aims to verify the effects of brand experience factors and brand personality factors of Market Kurly, a representative early morning delivery brand, on brand attachment and brand loyalty. Research design, data, and methodology: For this purpose, 204 ordinary people in their 20s and 40s who have experience in using Market Kurly were surveyed. 7 hypotheses were verified by using hierarchical regression analysis. Results: Affective experience, intellectual experience, and behavioral experience among brand experience factors had a positive effect on brand attachment. Also, brand personality-self-image congruence and brand personality-human brand congruence as brand personality factors had a positive effect on brand attachment. The brand attachment was identified as an important preceding factor to explain the brand loyalty of Market Kurly. Conclusions: When applying brand experience factors to the early morning delivery service context, each brand experience factor affected brand attachment and brand loyalty. The scope of research on brand personality-self-image congruence was expanded in that it considered both brand personality-human brand congruence and brand personality-self-image congruence. This study provides academic and practical implications by revealing that brand experience factors and brand personality factors can positively affect brand attachment and brand loyalty.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.400-412
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• 2012

This study explores the characteristics and effects of a pop-up store based on how the store attributions of a pop-up store influence brand attitude and brand patronage intention. The questionnaire consisted of 3 instruments: store attributes, brand attitude, and brand revisiting intention. Data were analyzed by factor analysis, frequency analysis, reliability analysis, and multiple regressions, using SPSS 18.0. We surveyed 123 males and females, who had an experience of a pop-up store, and interviewed five experts who work in the fashion related area. The results of this study were as follows. First, it was shown that VMD has positive impacts on brand patronage intention, but with no significant relationship to brand attitude. Second, a brand culture's experience of a pop-up store has a strong influence on brand attitude and brand patronage intention. Third, products in the store are the most important factors that influence brand attitude. The findings indicate that the promotion of diverse attributes of apop-up store is critical to make customers perceive brand attitude and brand patronage intention that are expected to be used to establish advanced marketing strategies.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.77-97
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• 2014

The concept that human and brand can related to each other is referred to as 'brand relationship' or 'consumer-brand relationship'. By arguing that the concept of brand relationship is a readily understandable analogue, it appears that relationship thinking in the context of consumers and brands sometimes is taken for granted without thoroughly discussing its applicability. This study tried to investigated the role of brand personification in building consumer-brand relationship. In order to explain the consumer-brand relationship as a kind of partner relationship among human beings, we need to define brand as human not inanimate object. Research findings show that personification is not a important factor that affects consumer-brand relationship. And this study shows brand experience is much more important factor than brand personification in building consumer-brand relationship. In the past researches, brand personality and brand congruity were major variables that effect consumer-brand relationship, but they did not mean consumers think their brands as human whenever they contact them. As a result, this study conclude that the frequency of personification is not that high compared to past studies suggested before, even if it is possible to find partial characteristics of human from brands.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.1025-1035
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• 2006

Brand Relationship Quality(BRQ) reflects the intensity and viability of the enduring association between a consumer and a brand so it is assumed to be the indicator which can affect brand performance such as brand satisfaction, brand attitude, and brand loyalty. The purpose of this study is to analyze the structural equation model showing the path between BRQ and brand performance. The subjects were women in their 20s to 40s living in Seoul and other metropolitan areas. 482 copies of questionnaire were analyzed by reliability, Pearson's correlation analysis, confirmatory factor analysis using SPSS 11.0 Package and AMOS 5.0 Package. The results showed that BRQ had positive influence on the brand performance-brand satisfaction, brand attitude, brand loyalty. As for the total effect about brand loyalty, BRQ was the most influential variable compared with other variables- brand satisfaction, brand attitude. The indirect impact of BRQ on brand loyalty is bigger than the direct impact of BRQ and brand satisfaction emerged as the important intermediate variable between BRQ and brand loyalty. Therefore, effective marketing strategy can be accomplished according to differential impact of the BRQ facets to induce consumer's satisfaction, which can lead to brand loyalty.

• The Journal of Economics, Marketing and Management
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.41-51
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• 2024

Purpose: This study explores the distinctive characteristics of virtual influencers compared to human influencers and examines how parasocial relationships with human consumers affect brand attitude. The hypothesis suggests that virtual influencers can overcome social distance barriers, emphasizing their role in fostering engagement. Research design, data and methodology: A structural model based on the source credibility model and unique traits of virtual influencers analyzes these dynamics. An online survey conducted in April 2024 garnered responses from 286 participants. Results: Findings reveal that virtual influencers positively impact parasocial interactions, which in turn enhance parasocial relationships and brand attitudes. However, the proposed effect of novelty on brand attitude through parasocial interaction was not statistically supported. Conclusions: This study highlights the unique attributes of virtual influencers, such as anthropomorphism, empathy, and novelty, which enhance consumer engagement through parasocial interactions and influence brand attitude. It provides a comprehensive framework for leveraging virtual influencers in marketing, offering significant advantages in maintaining consistent brand messaging and reducing risks associated with human influencers.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.1277-1288
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• 2009

Building strong brand equity has been the most effective method to extend market share and ensure profits. Brand extension strategy by using well-established mother brand names also becomes the most efficient way to enter a new market. The first objective of this study is to conceptualize and evaluate fashion brand equity. The next purpose is to investigate the relationship between mother brand equity and extended brand attitude. The survey was conducted from the 15th to the 26th of June 2009. We conducted a survey with 200 university students and 182 samples were analyzed. The data was analyzed by SPSS 12.0 with reliability analysis, frequency analysis, factor analysis, regression analysis and One-way ANOVA analysis. The results of this study are as follows. Firstly, the factors of brand equity based on customers were "Brand Satisfaction", "Brand Reliability", "Brand Personality/Value", "Brand Characteristic", and "Brand Edge". Secondly, the order of brand equity based on customers in this study was Polo, Beanpole and Tommy Hilfiger. Lastly, results revealed that brand extension was positively influenced by all factors of mother brand equity.