Store brand and store loyalty: The moderating role of store brand positioning

Despite extensive research, the relationship between store brand loyalty and store loyalty remains uncertain. Recent research suggest a nonmonotonic relationship between store brand loyalty and store loyalty: positive up to a certain store brand loyalty level, after which it becomes negative (inverted U). However, existing arguments suggest this relationship may relate to the competitive positioning of store brands, especially their price–quality positioning. The more quality-oriented the store brand positioning, the more favorable the effect of store brand loyalty appears to be on store loyalty. An empirical study, focused on retailers that simultaneously offer several store brands with different price–quality positions, corroborates this proposition. The store brand loyalty level at which store brand loyalty induces a negative effect on store loyalty occurs earlier when the store brand positioning stresses price instead of quality.