What matters to store Brand Equity? An approach to Spanish large retailing in a downturn context

Store brands account for 41% of the Spanish market share in 2011, and a further increase is expected in next years due to economic crisis, which makes up an increasingly competitive market with great research interest. In this context, our study aims to analyze which variables have a relevant influence on store Brand Equity from the consumers' standpoint in the current downturn context, providing an empirical research on the Spanish large retailing. We carried out an on-line questionnaire to customers of store brands residing in Spain, obtaining a total amount of 362 valid responses regarding the Spanish large retailers Mercadona, Dia, Eroski, Carrefour and El Corte Inglés. Then, the analysis was performed by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Results obtained suggest that store commercial image has the higher influence on both store brand perceived quality and store brand awareness, and in relation with the sources of store Brand Equity, the dimension store brand awareness shows the greater influence on the formation of store Brand Equity. This study is of great interest for large retailers who wish to increase their store brands' value proposition to the marketplace, especially during economic downturns.