CONSUMER BEHAVIOR ON THE RUSSIAN WELLNESS MARKET: RESULTS OF EMPIRICAL STUDY

Abstract

The wellness market is growing in Russia since the 1990s. This process is accompanied by promotion of healthy lifestyle and by development of consumption standards of wellness products and services. Because this industry is new for Russia, its’ segment structure is constantly developing. Despite the great interest of producers to wellness market serious empirical studies are absent in this area in Russia. This paper empirically examines the effect that factors of external and internal nature have on consumers’ attitude and consumption within Russian wellness market. Research methods include literature overview, a series of in-depth interviews with wellness experts and a quantitative research of 560 Russian wellness market adherents. Results show a significant relationship between consumers’ attitude towards the wellness concept and the level of consumption of wellness goods and services. Eight segments of Russian wellness consumers with significantly different socio-demographic and behavioral characteristics were revealed and described during the study.