The impact of marketing promotions on fashion buying during COVID-19 pandemic (based on local fashion brands Sri Lanka)

Abstract

" Sri Lanka is a country with a long history of sustainable fashion. The fashion industry in Sri Lanka has developed to be a key sector with new developments shaping the current and future trends. However, several factors and external influences such as the COVID-19 pandemic have caused a paradigm shift in the fashion retail sector and other business sectors in Sri Lanka. To rise above these challenges, several fashion brands in different countries including Sri Lanka, have adopted marketing promotions strategies to influence brand choices and maintain the brand loyalty of their consumers. Although the marketing promotions adopted were aimed towards better satisfaction of the target consumers’ needs, the effects of these promotional tools on consumer behaviour remain uncertain. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the impact of marketing promotions on fashion buying in relation to local fashion brands in Sri Lanka during the COVID-19 pandemic. For the purpose of the study, four factors influencing consumers' buying behaviour were identified based on analysis of theoretical frameworks and empirical findings. A structured survey questionnaire was constructed and distributed among the participants based on the four factors with potential influence on consumers’ buying behaviour in relation to local fashion brands in Sri Lanka. Even though the study findings showed that the respondents are generally neutral with respect to the identified factors in relation to local fashion brands, analysis of the hypotheses revealed that there is a significant correlation between direct marketing and sales promotion with consumers’ buying behaviour with respect to local fashion brands in Sri Lanka, as also affirmed in the local and international studies. "