Relationship intention amongst clothing retail customers: an exploratory study
Abstract
Orientation: Increasing competition has resulted in clothing retailers placing more emphasis
on expensive relationship marketing tactics to retain customers. The retailers often use
customers’ loyalty programme membership and the duration of their support to identify and
target them in relationship-building efforts.
Research purpose: This study determines the viability of relationship intention by measuring
and categorising clothing customers according to their relationship intentions. The study also
explores the duration of customer support for a clothing retailer, membership of their loyalty
programme and the relationship thereof with customers’ relationship intentions towards that
retailer.
Motivation for the study: Relationship building efforts would be better directed at customers
with relationship intentions.
Research design, approach and method: Quantitative in nature, this study followed a
descriptive research design and used an interviewer-administered survey to collect data from
511 clothing retail customers residing in the greater Pretoria metropolitan area.
Main findings: Clothing retailers can effectively determine and categorise customers
according to their relationship intentions. The duration customers have supported a clothing
retailer and its loyalty programme has no relationship with their relationship intentions.
Practical/Managerial implications: Clothing retailers should focus their relationship building
on customers with relationship intentions, as they are more likely to respond favourably. They
are more likely to be retained by the clothing retailer and provide a return on investment.
Contribution/value-add: This study gives clothing retailers a reliable and valid measuring
instrument that can be used to identify customers with relationship intentions, rather than
relying on the duration of the customers’ support and their loyalty programme membership