Family Enterprises in the Context of Consumer Ethnocentrism and Relationship-Building

Abstract

Previous research on family entrepreneurship has given relatively little consideration to the attitudes of consumers towards Family Enterprises (FEs). The aim of the article is to deepen our understanding of consumer behaviour towards FEs. The paper’s theoretical framework is based on two concepts: consumer ethnocentrism and commitment-trust theory in relationship marketing. The article employs a grounded-theory methodology, whose primary purpose is to develop theoretical underpinnings of consumer behaviour towards FEs. The paper is based on latent participant observation and individual in-depth interviews conducted in 2017. The findings indicate that FEs do not communicate their family identity explicitly and that consumers adopt ethnocentric attitudes towards FEs. Furthermore, young buyers should be treated as an important challenge for FEs. The article concludes by emphasizing implications for theory and business practice which are applicable beyond the Polish context. JEL: D12, D22 null The creation of the English-language version of these publications is financed in the framework of contract No. 607/P-DUN/2018 by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education committed to activities aimed at the promotion of education.

Keywords

• family enterprises
• consumers
• consumer ethnocentrism
• relationship