Factors Affecting Impulse Buying Behavior of Female Consumers in the Cosmetics Sector: The Moderating Role of Product‑Category Familiarity

Abstract

The increasing interest of female consumers in beauty and personal care has significantly contributed to the rapid growth of the cosmetics industry. In this sector, women often respond sensitively to environmental stimuli and tend to make unplanned, impulse purchasing decisions. This study aims to identify the key factors influencing Impulse Buying Behavior (IBB) among female consumers in the cosmetics sector and to examine the moderating role of Product‑Category Familiarity (PCF) in these relationships. According to the literature, factors affecting impulse buying are commonly categorized into five groups: consumer‑related, store‑related, environmental, marketing‑mix, and socio‑demographic factors. This study focuses on three categories: environmental (social norms), store‑related (in‑store atmosphere and store promotion level), and consumer‑related factors (perceived brand value, price consciousness, and hedonic value). The study gathered data from 550 respondents through a structured questionnaire and employed a convenience sampling technique. To assess the direct effect hypotheses, PLS‑SEM was applied, while the moderating effect of product‑category familiarity was analyzed using Multi‑Group Analysis (MGA). The findings reveal that brand value, price consciousness, in‑store promotions, hedonic consumption, and normative effect positively impact IBB, whereas store atmosphere has no significant effect. Furthermore, PCF moderates the relationships between perceived brand value, price consciousness, and normative effect with impulse buying. This study makes a contribution to the literature by empirically identifying the environmental, store‑related, and consumer‑related factors driving impulse buying in the cosmetics sector and provides strategic insights for practitioners. Additionally, it addresses a notable gap in the literature by exploring the moderating role of product category familiarity. However, the generalizability of the results is limited due to the use of convenience sampling and the exclusive focus on female consumers.