Cultural differences in vertical brand extension evaluations: the influence of thinking styles

Purpose The paper examines the cultural differences in consumers' evaluations of vertical brand extensions. Design/methodology/approach A 2 (extension types: upward, downward) x 2 (nationality: USA, China) x 2 (ownership: owner, non-owner) between-subjects design with thinking styles as a covariate was employed to test consumers' evaluations of vertical brand extensions. A total of 228 subjects from the US and 194 from China participated in the two experimental studies. Findings The paper finds that consumers prefer downward extensions to upward extensions. Furthermore, Chinese consumers have even more favorable evaluations of downward extension products than do American consumers. In addition, analytic thinkers exhibit a stronger ownership effect than holistic thinkers. Originality/value The research contributes to the understanding of culture differences in vertical brand extension evaluations.