Cultural Values and Influencer Marketing: Exploring Modest Fashion Purchase Intentions of Conservative Women in Kuwait

The influence on the purchase and consumption of products has been a topic of discussion for over a century. However, the role of individuals who help or hinder product growth, such as public figures in our current time, has significantly shaped societies. With the rise of social media, a new platform has emerged, evolving from blogs to the present day, where influencers act as spokespersons for brands. Social media has played a crucial role in persuading women in the Middle East, particularly in the Gulf region, regarding certain types of conservative fashion that align with Arab and Islamic dress codes in countries like Kuwait. This thesis focuses on influencers and their role in conveying brand messages and contributing to product sales among a specific segment: conservative women, particularly in Kuwait. Kuwait, as an Arab Islamic country, has its own conservative customs and traditions regarding women’s clothing. Family plays a significant role in influencing what can be worn, both in maintaining conservativeness and in making luxury purchases. Studies have shown that influencers possess considerable authority in driving word-of-mouth promotion and enhancing sales.This study examines this phenomenon concerning conservative female consumers. This study employed a quantitative methodology, utilising a survey to investigate the model consisting of word-of-mouth, culture, trust, and brand image, which aims to understand the purchase intention influenced by the influencer's moderating role. The demographic sample of the survey consisted of 392 female participants. The age and education levels varied from high school diplomas to PhD degrees. The survey questions were adapted from published research papers in the field of study for each variable. The researcher conducted a pilot test to validate the questionnaire’s validity and to address any issues that arose before publishing the primary survey. The pilot study consisted of 41 female participants. The pilot test enabled the researcher to assess the validity of the questions and address any issues arising from the translation from English to Arabic, given that this study was conducted in Kuwait, an Arabic-speaking country.Three theories were drawn upon in this study: the Influence Theory, Technological Determinism theory, and the Theory of Planned Behaviour. The findings of this study revealed that, contrary to other beliefs, word-of-mouth had a negative impact when moderated by influencers. Utilising influencers in this situation negatively affected the relationship between word-of-mouth and purchase intention. Similarly, Culture was also negatively impacted by the moderating role of influencers. The research presents two separate findings: first, word-of-mouth is adversely affected by influencer moderation; second, influencers have a negative impact on the culture variable. Consequently, these two findings represent novel contributions to the literature that may facilitate further research. This study contributes to the field by providing new insights into these relationships within Kuwaiti culture and opens avenues for further research.