Sprinkle, Smell, Remember: How Sensory Salience and Ritualistic Use of Domino's Oregano Drive Nostalgia-Mediated Repurchase Intention and Brand Recall

Sensory cues serve as potent drivers of consumer behavior, yet their influence on nostalgia-mediated brand outcomes remains underexplored in the context of food service branding. This study investigates how sensory salience and ritualistic usage behaviors associated with Domino's oregano sachets influence repurchase intention and brand recall through three mediating mechanisms: nostalgic feelings, sensory pleasure, and emotional comfort. Employing a quantitative cross-sectional design, we collected data from 350 urban consumers with recent Domino's purchasing experience. Structural equation modeling via partial least squares (PLS-SEM) was utilized to test a comprehensive sensory-emotional branding framework. Results reveal that sensory salience, frequency of exposure, perceived uniqueness, and ritualistic usage behavior significantly predict mediating variables (nostalgic feelings, sensory pleasure, and emotional comfort), which subsequently enhance repurchase intention and brand recall. Notably, sensory pleasure emerged as the strongest direct predictor of both outcome variables (β = 0.283 for brand recall, β = 0.280 for repurchase intention, p < 0.001). The model explains 87.6% of variance in brand recall and 88.9% in repurchase intention, demonstrating the explanatory power of the sensory-emotional framework. This research extends sensory branding literature by conceptualizing micro branding cues as ritualistic touchpoints and contributes practical insights for leveraging sensory marketing in highly competitive food service environments.