The Effects of Perceived Congruity Between Origin, Brand and Product on the Purchase Intention of a Branded Product of Origin

Attitude toward geographical origin is considered an influential factor of individual evaluations in the COO literature. However, a model controlling for the effects of attitude toward the product category, the brand, the geographical origin and the corresponding perceived congruity factors (product category x origin, brand x origin, product category x brand), demonstrates no effect of origin attitude on the purchase intention of a branded product of origin. In the case of congruity between brand, origin and the product category, a dominant effect of brand attitude is observed. This effect decreases in the case of incongruity, and perceived congruity factors are then included in the evaluation, alongside brand attitude. Our empirical application is replicated over two food product categories.