The purpose of this paper is to investigate the association between three personality traits (individualism, materialism and the “need for cognition”) and two characteristics of shoppers who buy private‐label brands (their predisposition to do so, and the importance they attach to the “brand dimensions”) across four member countries of the Union of the Mediterranean.
A questionnaire in the local language, using questions, items and scales adapted from previous studies, was completed by 683 undergraduate students. The scaled data were analysed by SPSS, and tested for internal reliability and equivalence.
Overall, the personality traits were significantly associated with both behavioural characteristics. Specifically, materialism and the need for cognition were linked to inclination to purchase private brands, and materialism and individualism to the perceived importance of brand dimensions. Cross‐cultural differences were found.
The demographic profile of the private‐brand consumer is well known, but not the behavioural profile. This study provides retail planners with valuable new marketing intelligence.
