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1. Introduction
Fashion generally refers to clothing and it is described as "a process which determines particular design, products or social behaviours for a specific period of time and replaces them regularly with new ones" ([39] Saviolo, 2002, p. 4). It has three components: style, acceptance and timing ([13] Frings, 1982; [31] Packard et al. , 1983; [43] Wolfe, 2003). However, fashion is a sector presenting a dream world to consumers, for which brand is essential. Therefore, it should be considered as a fourth component. One of the factors leading international fashion products to success is to have a strong brand, which is achieved through a greater level of brand knowledge ([17] Guedes and da Costa Soares, 2005).
Brand awareness and brand image are two components of brand knowledge, which are the consumer sides of the brand, therefore they could be controlled by the company ([34] Rajh, 2002) so that all over the world international brands present the same image of fashion supported by franchising chains and marketing communication activities. On the other hand, it is necessary to clarify the impact of personal or environmental determinants on brand knowledge that consumers' characteristics might affect their brand knowledge. Previous research showed the influence of consumer personality on brand knowledge. However, there are other factors that could affect brand knowledge: gender, field of education and having consumed a brand. The purpose of this paper is to ascertain these possible effects by comparing the brand knowledge of Turkish students. The paper starts by reviewing the related literature on brand knowledge and its measurement. It is followed by methodology, findings, and conclusion sections.
2. Brand knowledge
Brand helps to differentiate products or services from the others ([25] Kotler and Keller, 2009) and "embodies every undertaking of the company and represents it to the world as a hologram, plays a part in the formation of relationships, and expresses and contributes group affiliation" ([42] Sherry, 2005, p. 46). Brands are markers of offerings for companies, and a sign of quality, and an indicator of risk or trust for consumers ([24] Keller and Lehmann, 2005). An overall value of a brand demonstrates its equity ([20] Kaplan, 2007). Brand equity is "a set of brand assets and liabilities linked to a brand, its...