INTEGRATING ANIME FANDOM ENGAGEMENT, SOCIAL INFLUENCE, AND BRAND EXPERIENCE WITHIN THE THEORY OF PLANNED BEHAVIOR FRAMEWORK: A STUDY ON GENERATION Z’s REPURCHASE INTENTION TOWARD UNIQLO COLLABORATIVE FASHION IN JAKARTA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46273/jobe.v14i1.660Keywords:
fandom engagement, social influence, brand experience, Theory of Planned Behavior, repurchase intention, generation zAbstract
The growing consumption of Japanese popular-culture-based fashion among Generation Z reflects a shift from utilitarian purchasing toward identity expression and emotional engagement, yet research integrating fandom engagement, social influence, and brand experience within a single framework to explain repurchase intention remains limited. This study examines how these three antecedents shape Generation Z’s repurchase intention toward Uniqlo UT’s anime-themed collaborative fashion products in Jakarta through the lens of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). A quantitative explanatory design was applied using a cross-sectional survey of 228 Generation Z respondents (aged 17-28) domiciled in Jakarta who had previously purchased Uniqlo UT anime-themed products, selected through purposive sampling and analyzed with Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (SmartPLS 4.0). All six hypothesized paths were empirically supported: fandom engagement, social influence, and brand experience positively influenced attitude toward behavior, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control respectively, which in turn fully mediated the effects of these antecedents on repurchase intention through a serial structural pathway. Brand experience, channeled through perceived behavioral control, emerged as the model’s dominant pathway, indicating that while fandom affiliation draws consumers to an initial purchase, it is consistent product quality, sizing reliability, and purchase accessibility that most strongly determine whether they return for subsequent collaborative releases. These findings extend TPB into popular-culture-based consumption and offer practical implications for fashion brands designing collaboration strategies grounded in brand experience and fandom community engagement.
References
Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-t
Ciersya, I. A.-Z., Afifah, N., Purmono, B. B., Ramadania, & Karsim. (2023). The influence of fandom culture, social media and viral marketing on the popularity of the Film Mencuri Raden Saleh which causes Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) symptoms in Indonesian society. International Journal of Applied Finance and Business Studies, 11(3), 448–459.
Del Olmo Arriaga, J. L., Pretel-Jiménez, M., & Ruíz-Viñals, C. (2025). From fast fashion to shared sustainability: The role of digital communication and policy in Generation Z’s consumption habits. Sustainability, 17(18), 8382. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17188382
Fitriana, E., & Tuti, M. (2025). A consumer experience and luxury brand perception on brand love and intention to purchase. Jurnal Manajemen dan Kewirausahaan, 12(2), 153–162. https://doi.org/10.26905/jmdk.v12i2.12810
Hair, J. F., Jr., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2022). A primer on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Hidayat, D., & Hidayat, Z. (2020). Anime as Japanese intercultural communication: A study of the Weeaboo community of Indonesian Generation Z and Y. Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations, 22(3), 85–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102819
Molinillo, S., Japutra, A., & Ekinci, Y. (2023). The role of brand authenticity and brand engagement in building repurchase intention. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 72, 103265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2023.103265
Kang, J., Bissenbina, A., Faria, A. A., & Jang, J. (2023). Psychological ownership rather than material consumption: Can fashion firms’ new subscription services become an environmentally sustainable business strategy? Business Strategy and the Environment, 33(3), 1592–1609. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3559
Liang, S., Xu, J., & Huang, E. (2024). Comprehensive analysis of the effect of social influence and brand image on purchase intention. SAGE Open, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440231218771
Marcella, N. P. (2023). Analisis motivasi pecinta budaya Jepang dalam membeli kaos Uniqlo x Jujutsu Kaisen. Kiwari, 2(4), 719–723. https://doi.org/10.24912/ki.v2i4.27305
Muttaqin, Z., Savitri, C., Suroso, S., & Gu, K. M. (2024). Strategi kolaborasi Uniqlo dengan program anime terhadap hasil penjualan: Studi pada Uniqlo dengan program anime. Akademik: Jurnal Mahasiswa Humanis, 4(3), 1056–1069. https://doi.org/10.37481/jmh.v4i3.995
Ngo, T. T. A., Vo, C. H., Tran, N. L., Nguyen, K. V., Tran, T. D., & Trinh, Y. N. (2024). Factors influencing Generation Z’s intention to purchase sustainable clothing products in Vietnam. PLoS ONE, 19(12), e0315502. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0315502
Palomo-Domínguez, I., Elías-Zambrano, R., & Álvarez-Rodríguez, V. (2023). Generation Z’s motivations towards sustainable fashion and eco-friendly brand attributes: The case of Vinted. Sustainability, 15(11), 8753. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15118753
Papadopoulou, C., Vardarsuyu, M., & Oghazi, P. (2023). Examining the relationships between brand authenticity, perceived value, and brand forgiveness: The role of cross-cultural happiness. Journal of Business Research, 167, 114154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.114154
Samaniego-Arias, M., Chávez-Rojas, E., García-Umaña, A., Carrión-Bósquez, N., Ortiz-Regalado, O., Llamo-Burga, M., Ruiz-García, W., Guerrero-Haro, S., & Cando-Aguinaga, W. (2025). The impact of social media on the purchase intention of organic products. Sustainability, 17(6), 2706. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17062706
Shastry, V. S., & Anupama. (2021). Consumer attitude and their purchase intention: A review of literature. International Review of Business and Economics, 5(2), 50–72. https://doi.org/10.56902/irbe.2021.5.2.3
Tertiano, R. F., & Salehudin, I. (2023). Fandom power: Examining customer engagement, attitudes, and purchase intentions in K-Pop fandom-brand collaborations. ASEAN Marketing Journal, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.7454/amj.v15i1.1208
Wibowo, A., Chen, S., Wiangin, U., Ma, Y., & Ruangkanjanases, A. (2020). Customer behavior as an outcome of social media marketing: The role of social media marketing activity and customer experience. Sustainability, 13(1), 189. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13010189
Wu, Y., & Lee, Y. (2025). A study on the impact of the consumption value of sustainable fashion products on purchase intention based on the theory of planned behavior. Sustainability, 17(10), 4278. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17104278
Zollo, L. (2024). Ethical identity, social image and sustainable fashion: Still an impossible deal? A sociopsychological framework of ethical consumers’ attitude-behavior gaps. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 41(5), 564–582. https://doi.org/10.1108/jcm-08-2023-6213
