Greening the competitive advantage: antecedents and consequences of green brand equity

The concept of green brand equity has recently been introduced to business research. Chen (J Bus Ethics 93:307-319, 2010) found green brand equity to be positively influenced by green brand image via green satisfaction and green trust as parallel mediators in an Asian electronic product customer sample. Our research aims at replicating and extending these findings. Based on a German sample (N = 358), we replicate this mediation model in a different cultural context (a Western culture), extend it to service brands, and show that the model is valid for female as well as male consumers. Furthermore, we extend the original model by providing first empirical evidence for the relevance of green brand equity as a predictor of key economic indicators of consumer response (i.e., brand attitude, positive word-of-mouth communication). Finally, we discuss the implications of green brand equity for management as one determinant of a company's success in a highly competitive business world.