Beyond the myth: understanding women's impulsive retail footwear shopping

Abstract

Purpose

This research focuses on common misconceptions about the factors driving women to purchase footwear impulsively. Its primary objective is to explore how emotional and social triggers specifically influence women's purchasing decisions, contrasting with the traditionally rational consumer models.

Design/methodology/approach

An online questionnaire was administered to a sample of women, yielding 199 useable responses.

Findings

The findings reveal the key determinants of women's impulsive retail footwear purchases, which include self-regulation, hedonic motivations and the influence of the retail store environment. This research challenges the prevailing assumption that women's passion for shopping is driven solely by inherent characteristics and suggests that external factors substantially shape their impulsive buying behaviour. In summary, the stereotypical portrayal of women as compulsive retail footwear shoppers may result more from external stimuli and environmental factors rather than an intrinsic trait.

Originality/value

This study improves the existing knowledge of women’s impulsive buying behaviour by unveiling the determinants of women's impulsive footwear purchases and assessing whether prevailing stereotypes hold true.

Citation

Duarte, P., Silva, S.C., Magro, M. and Dias, J.C. (2025), "Beyond the myth: understanding women's impulsive retail footwear shopping", International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. 53 No. 1, pp. 16-37. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJRDM-10-2023-0606