The Extended Shopping Experience of Used Clothes in Hungary

Abstract

Nowadays, the accepted economic theory is that consumer behaviour needs to be considered not only for its physical elements but also for its emotional aspects. The service economy has turned into an experience-based economy, and supply is based on a consumer's experience, specializing in gaining experience. Product experience has three aspects, namely, consumers' thoughts, values, and perceptions about the product. Shopping experience involves consumer processes and responses to the shopping environment, situation, and consumer characteristics. In this article, the concepts of product and shopping experience are examined for whether they are related and if so, how. The topic was examined through the purchase of second-hand clothes, because on the one hand, it is a very important environmental issue, and on the other hand purchase of the product recalls a very similar in-store shopping environment in Hungarian people. Qualitative processing of a questionnaire (n = 1060) gave the answer to what the connection between product and shopping experience is, and values derived from the extended shopping experience of used clothes are shown in the Fiore-Ogle model. The results highlight some relevant aspects of used clothes shopping in Hungary and deliver recommendations on how sustainable consumption and environmental consciousness could be strengthened.