Do Scandals Affect YOU as an Athletic Sportswear Consumer?

Abstract: Athletic sportswear brands endorse celebrity-athletes to promote the brand’s image and gain credibility by having these ‘experts’ associated with their brand. This marketing technique is often advantageous for sportswear companies. However, there may be liabilities and complications for the brand if the endorsed athlete becomes involved in a scandal. The two main purposes of this thesis are to assess how and if consumer-purchasing behaviour is affected by endorsed celebrity-athletes involved in a scandal, and at what point should these athletes' contracts be terminated by the brand, from a consumer’s perspective. This may offer companies with insightful information to make informed decisions in such circumstances. A mix-method approach is used to examine consumers’ purchasing behaviour and opinion. The main method of data collection was an online questionnaire. The questionnaire was supplemented by interviews. The general findings of the overall study regarding consumer-purchasing behaviour after a scandal show that consumers perceived the criminal, non-sports related scandals to have the most effect on their purchasing behaviour. The sports related scandals are the next set of scandals seen to have a significant effect on consumers. Lastly, the less criminal, non-sports related scandals are considered to have the lowest effect on consumer purchasing behaviour. In terms of the termination of the athlete’s contract, the general findings correlate with the opinions on the severity of the scandal. When the sample consumers believe they would continue to purchase, they also believe the brand should not terminate the contract, and vice versa. Therefore, these findings may hopefully guide sportswear companies to make informed decisions and avoid unwanted repercussions.