EUNJU KO Yonsei University HAO ZHANG* Yonsei University The Moderating Effects of Nationality and Lifestyle on the Relationship between Brand Equity and Purchase Intentions † This research investigates the differences in sportswear purchasing behavior between global consumers in Korea and China. Korean and Chinese consumers showed significant differences in purchasing behavior. Brand personality, perceived price, and brand loyalty showed a significant, positive relationship with purchase intentions across both cultural groups. The results identified two lifestyle categories for Korean and Chinese consumers: Adventurer and Follower. The consumers of each lifestyle group have significantly different views regarding brand equity and purchase intentions. Several marketing implications are discussed in this paper. The effect of brand equity on consumer behavior has received renewed attention (Van Osselaer & Alab, 2000; Yoo et al ., 2000). Brand equity provides consumers with quality information about a particular product (Krishan & Hartline, 2001). It refers to the marketing effect or outcomes that accrue to a product with its brand name, compared with those that would accrue if the same product did not have a brand name (Aaker, 1991). Relevant research finds that brand equity has a significant relationship with the purchase intentions of consumers, but the elements of brand equity have different roles. Jung and Sung (2008) found that (from among the elements of brand equity), only brand loyalty showed a positively significant relationship with purchase intentions for the three different culture groups. The influence of various elements of brand equity varied according to the culture of the consumers. Yasin et al. (2007) considered the country of origin for the brand as one moderators influencing the relationship between the antecedents of brand equity. However, limited research analyzes what factors can moderate the direct influence of the elements of brand equity on purchase intentions. It has been suggested that there is the emergence of a new group of consumers who have similar preferences that are promoted globally (Ko et al. , 2007). These similarities can be for product benefits that have global appeal or for products that meet the needs of emerging global lifestyles (Domzal & Unger, 1987). Rather than focus on national differences (a multinational approach), successful global marketers segment the world market according to consumer similarities. This paper determined the differences in the relationship between brand equity and purchase intentions for different lifestyle groups. This research considered nationality as another factor that influences the relationship between brand equity and purchase intentions. Certain types of † This work was supported in part by the Yonsei University Research Fund of 2007. Professor, Department of Clothing and Textiles, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea (ejko@yonsei.ac.kr) *Ph. D Candidate, Department of Clothing and Textiles, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea Key Words: brand equity, purchase intentions, nationality, lifestyle, sportswear