Gender orientation and retail atmosphere: effects on value perception

Purpose – Evaluative processes made in retail environments have been shown to vary between groups, particularly between men and women. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that a hedonic or utilitarian store atmosphere leads to different evaluations depending on the consumer's gender orientation. Design/methodology/approach – A pre‐test identifies hedonic and utilitarian store atmospheres. A main study uses an experimental design to compare the impact of these atmospheres on overall store quality, price perceptions and willingness to pay for products in these stores in function of the consumers' gender orientation. Findings – The results show that hedonic atmospheres lead to higher quality perception, higher price perception and higher purchase intention among female‐oriented consumers. Moreover, female‐oriented consumers are willing to pay 32 per cent more for the same product when this product is offered in a hedonic store atmosphere. Retailers should consider carefully how store design affects evaluations among male versus female‐oriented consumers. Research limitation/implications – The use of students reduces the generalisability of the results. Future research can test the propositions further. Originality/value – The results suggest that perceptions of store atmospheres are moderated by gender orientation, which is a segmentation variable that may be more relevant in today's gender‐blurring retail environments. Furthermore, the results show how value can be perceived from store atmospheres and transferred to products.