Webrooming, Showrooming & Situational Channel Use In Herbal Cosmetics Evidence from Indian Consumers

Purpose: This study is designed to explore the webrooming, showrooming, situational channel switching of herbal cosmetic products as well as to understand the motives for cross channel shopping. Design/methodology/approach: A cross-sectional survey generated 812 responses. Of these, 578 responses were deemed eligible and complete and thus were retained. For primary channel choice, the measures of webrooming and showrooming were directly measured by asking why they select the channel and the reasons were analysed descriptively. The key proportions were estimated by the use of 95% confidence intervals. Qualitative results were complemented with a thematic analysis of the 561 openended, nonscored responses, using a dictionary. Findings: Webrooming was reported by 48.4% of respondents (95% CI [44.4%, 52.5%]), whereas showrooming was reported by 32.2% (95% CI [28.5%, 36.1%]). When asked to choose their primary channel, 66.4% responded with a channel via both online and offline, and/or a conditional channel, with 33.6% choosing an exclusive online or offline main channel. Quality and effectiveness, reviews and recommendations, ingredients and safety, trust and brand reputation, and convenience and availability were the most frequently identified considerations. The integrated evidence is consistent with digital touchpoints supporting information search and social validation, while stores support sensory inspection and interpersonal assurance. Research limitations/implications: The cross-sectional, non-probability design supports estimation and contextual interpretation, not causal inference. The available analytical file did not permit respondent-level joint classification of webrooming and showrooming. Originality/value: The study extends omnichannel research to herbal cosmetics by integrating directly reported crosschannel behaviour with consumer-generated purchase priorities. It conceptualizes situational switching as a functional allocation of information, sensory, assurance and transaction needs across touchpoints.