This paper is about the identification and evaluation of antecedents and determinants of brand equity (BE). Among these antecedents are the firms' marketing strategies that are developed based on their marketing mix, and the determinants include both the dimension of BE and the variables related to clothing brand and consumers'buying behaviour. The general objective is to carry out a comparative analysis of the antecedents and determinants of brand equity in the clothing sector between brands and private labels. Therefore, a literature review of marketing and branding was carried out to establish the conceptual framework, constructs, variables, and metrics. The primary data were obtained from a survey with an accessible random sample of 571 shoppers of three shopping malls, and four public institutions: three universities, and one college, in the city of Fortaleza-Brazil. The data analysis and hypothesis testing were conducted using the structural equation modelling (SEM). The results analysis show that the influence of antecedents on the determinants and on BE is similar either for the manufacturing company brands or private labels. The exceptions are the influence of distribution intensity on brand loyalty, the influence of brand association on BE, which were statistically significant in the case of manufacturing company brands and were not significant in the case of private label companies, and the influence of advertising spending on brand loyalty, which was not statiscally significant in the case of manufacturing company brands and was significant in the case of private label companies. Based on these results, company managers in this sector can adapt their marketing strategies focusing on the creation/improvement of clothing brand equity according to the relative importance of the antecedents and determinants of BE.
Brand equity; Marketing mix; Clothing industry
