Demystifying the impact of religious beliefs and environmental concerns on consumer–brand relationships

Abstract

Purpose Vegan cosmetics are becoming popular among consumers as they are made without animal ingredients. This study aims to analyse the impact of religious beliefs and environmental concerns on consumer–brand relationships using the stimulus-organism-response theory in the vegan cosmetics category. Design/methodology/approach The primary data has been collected from 281 millennial respondents. The authors used Smart PLS (v.4.0.9.5) to analyse the data and test the proposed hypotheses. Findings The study findings suggest that Environmental concerns significantly impact attitudes compared to religious beliefs. The mediating role of attitude towards vegan cosmetics between religious beliefs, brand sacredness and mindful consumption was established. It may be because of the inter-variable relationship of religious beliefs-attitude-brand sacredness on the premise of S-O-R. Originality/value This revelation contributes significantly to the academic discourse on mindful consumption and holds pragmatic implications for businesses and policymakers aiming to effectively promote environmentally responsible choices among consumers. The findings enrich the past literature on vegan cosmetics, demonstrating that trusting religious belief is a salient determinant of consumers’ attitudes towards vegan cosmetics and mindful consumption. The findings also supported the applicability of stimulus-organism-response (SOR) in the domain of mindful consumption and consumer–brand relationships in the context of emerging markets.

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