What motivates second-hand gift-giving?

Purpose The study aims to combine economic, critical and recreational motives with the intention–behaviour relationship to explore what motivates consumers to buy second-hand gifts. The study further explores how the intention to buy second-hand gifts is realized in actual gift purchases, and how this relationship varies depending on individual’s green consumption values. The study conceptualizes second-hand gift-giving and emphasizes its importance in reducing the environmental burden. Design/methodology/approach This study collected data in two-phases, before and after Christmas. Study 1 focuses on the motive–intention–behaviour chain in second-hand gift-giving and combines motivating factors with the intention–behaviour relationship. Given the known gap in the intention–behaviour relationship, study 2 tests the robustness of the findings related to the intention–behaviour relationship, moderated by green consumption values. Findings This study shows that the search for a fair price operates as the strongest predictor of second-hand gift-giving intentions, followed by treasure hunting, ethics and ecology-related factors and the distance from the system. Motivating factors generally impact second-hand gift-giving indirectly through intention and they account for 21.9% of the variance in intention. The results further show that the intention to buy second-hand gifts is a strong predictor of the actual purchase, with intention alone explaining 29.1% and 17.9% of the variance in the purchase behaviour in studies 1 and 2, respectively. Research limitations/implications Future research could explore actual purchase behaviour of second-hand gift-giving in the long term, as the present study was unable to account for such an issue. The present study purposefully focused on the purchasing of non-altered second-hand items, which does not cover upcycling, referring to reuse and alteration that results in an increase in value. Overall, limited research exists on the upcycling of products, let alone on the gifting of upcycled items, which would provide a fruitful avenue for future research. Practical implications The study sheds light on the purchasing intentions versus behaviour of second-hand gifts; yet not only do consumers need to reconsider their consumption patterns, but similarly retailers are encouraged to rethink their business models to foster second-hand trade and to open avenues for the sale of pre-loved and pre-used second-hand items. Originality/value The study conceptualizes second-hand gift-giving and shows how economic, critical and recreational factors drive second-hand gift-giving. This study show that the intention to buy second-hand gifts is a good predictor of actual behaviour and the well-known intention–behaviour gap is not much of an issue in second-hand gift-giving. We conclude that second-hand gift-giving is intentional and not impulsive.