The implication of country disposition in consumer response to ingredient branding strategies

In this research, we examined the effect of the country of origin (COO) image of an ingredient brand on consumers' evaluation of a host brand. Using airlines as host products and aircraft as ingredients, two experiments were conducted in Brazil and Canada respectively, to assess the COO effect of an ingredient brand on the host brand. Results show that a local host brand from a country with a favorable COO image (Canada) is unaffected by an ingredient brand from a country with an unfavorable COO image (Brazil), whereas a local host brand from a country with an unfavorable COO image is benefited by an ingredient brand from a country with a favorable COO image. This effect is moderated by a home country bias of consumers. Evaluation of the local host brand was unaffected by the COO image of the ingredient brand among those with a high bias toward local brands.