``Consumer-to-Brand Impoliteness'' in Luxury Stores
Résumé
In this article, we use Impoliteness Theory, defined as an intentional ``face-threatening'' deviant act, to understand consumer misbehavior in the luxury store subculture. Using a qualitative study based on Grounded Theory, we interviewed 14 luxury consumers and 18 salespeople working in luxury stores. We discovered that consumers use impoliteness in a normative exchange setting as a means of formulating their opposition to a brand's symbolic violence. Our research on deviant consumer behavior in luxury stores brings to light a new concept: ``Consumer-to-Brand Impoliteness''. Furthermore, we unveil four Consumer-to-Brand Impoliteness practices: ``Being Crude'', ``Interfering'', ``Mastering'', and finally, ``Blaspheming''. In a normative exchange context, understanding the underlying meanings of Consumer-to-Brand Impoliteness enables store managers to shape their responses according to the perceived level of such impoliteness practices. \textcopyright 2022 Elsevier Inc.
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