The Influence of Dual Branding Information on Consumer Evaluations

Abstract

Many retailers that have established their own private-label brands contract production of goods through premium brand producers, creating a system of dual branding. These relationships are not often disclosed to the public for various reasons. However, consumers can be inadvertently exposed to dual branding knowledge. This research examines the influence of dual branding on customers’ respective brand evaluations through the mechanism of their comparative quality perceptions. Findings from an experiment support dual branding’s indirect influence on consumers’ evaluations of competing private and premium brands through its effect on comparative quality perceptions