Abstract
As initial assemblers of merchandise assortments, retail buyers play a critical role in determining what clothing will be available to consumers. This study examined retail buyers' reasons for procuring imported apparel. Sixty-nine retail buyers for specialty, department, and discount stores were the subjects of the study. All subjects strongly believed that imports offer better quality for price than domestic products do. There were significant differences between buyers in specialty stores and buyers in discount stores on the question of exclusive merchandise andprivate branding: specialty store buyers indicated that these were important reasons for their buying imports.
Analysis of covariance and stepwise multiple regression were used to examine the influence of age, education, salary, and position experience upon buyers' responses. Implications of these findings for domestic apparel manufacturers are discussed.
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