Counterfeiting and Culture: Consumer Attitudes towards Counterfeit Products.

This paper examines how culture influences consumer attitudes and behavior towards counterfeit luxury products. By using structural equation modeling and multigroup analysis on survey data, this paper shows how consumers' attitude towards counterfeits is stronger in Individualist and Feminine countries, and mainly influenced by social consensus and purpose of purchase. To reduce the demand for counterfeits, marketers must therefore adopt culture-specific strategies to address subtle differences among various cultural groups. While counterfeiting should be emphasized as a shameful practice in Individualist countries, more emphasis should be placed on the overall society’s well-being rather than individual rights in Collective countries.