Abstract
Often luxury product purchases are motivated by the need to achieve social acceptance and communicate status. However, given the cost, many consumers turn to counterfeits to meet the social pressure. This makes a consumer's social environment important to understand as the majority of consumers cannot afford the authentic luxury goods and turn to counterfeits instead. Given the importance of the social environment, this study focused on the impact social factors (normative susceptibility, informative susceptibility, collectivism) have on the attitude towards counterfeit luxury goods. In addition, the study measured how materialism moderated these relationships. 517 completed questionnaires were retained for analyses, which included multiple regression and moderation analyses. The results of the study found that normative susceptibility and collectivism have an impact on the attitude towards counterfeit luxury goods while informative susceptibility did not have an impact on attitude. Furthermore, materialism moderated the relationship between normative susceptibility and attitude, demonstrating how the need to impress the social group through possessions encourages positive attitudes towards counterfeit luxury goods. The study's findings provide insights into how consumer's attitudes could be deterred towards the purchase of counterfeit luxury goods.