This paper provides empirical results on relative impacts from product quality, service quality and experience quality on customer perceived value and intention to shop in the future, for a coffee shop market. Pine and Gilmore's (1999, 2000) framework of an experience economy generally assumes experience is a major contributor, compared with product and service, to a customer's perceived value. While an experience economy gets more attention in the retailing sector, few empirical studies have been done. This study tries to fill the gap and hypothesises that the relative impacts of the experience economy would be different over individual differences. Starbucks coffee shops were chosen as the target retailers. A questionnaire was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data from 147 customers of Starbucks coffee in Taiwan. The evidence reveals that Pine and Gilmore's framework of an experience economy is not always true. The relative importance of product, service and experience changes over the income levels and the frequency of consumption. In addition, the findings also contribute some valuable insights to better use the model of the experience economy.

Volume 20

Numbers 11-12