American and Australian Women’s Antecedents to Trust, Commitment and Loyalty to Costco

Abstract

Value retailers such as Costco have created a shopping environment that inspires a “treasure-hunt” from its customers because certain items in their merchandise assortment are available in very limited quantities. The “thrill of the hunt” appeals to certain types of shoppers and can create a fun and exciting experience (Huddleston & Minahan, 2011). We surmise that this type of shopping environment will affect shopping environment satisfaction, which in turn will influence hedonic experience. The hedonic experience might lead to trust, commitment and loyalty to a retailer. With this in mind, our study examine whether shopping environment satisfaction and hedonic shopping value affect female consumer trust, commitment and loyalty to a store across cultures.