Title: Creative consumers in impoverished situations

Authors: Stefanie Beninger; Karen Robson

Addresses: Beedie School of Business, Simon Fraser University, 500 Granville Street, Vancouver, V6C 1W6, Canada ' Beedie School of Business, Simon Fraser University, 500 Granville Street, Vancouver, V6C 1W6, Canada

Abstract: This conceptual paper illustrates the presence of creative consumers in impoverished situations. This paper argues that consumers in the base of the pyramid are creative in their consumption and presents a series of propositions related to this phenomenon. Through the use of over 30 real-world examples, this paper aims to provide insight into creative consumption in the base of the pyramid. Understanding creative consumption in subsistence situations is interesting from an academic perspective, given the current dearth of literature on the topic, as well as from a managerial perspective. For organisations, understanding the role the creativity can and does play in the lives of consumers can lead to improved design of valuable solutions to this under-served market. This paper is intended to inform an audience including academics and practitioners interested in creative consumers and the base of the pyramid.

Keywords: creative consumers; impoverished situations; base of the pyramid; BoP; bottom of the pyramid; creativity; subsistence markets; development; marketing; poverty; products; after-use.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBEM.2014.065574

International Journal of Business and Emerging Markets, 2014 Vol.6 No.4, pp.356 - 370

Received: 19 Feb 2014
Accepted: 27 May 2014
Published online: 08 Nov 2014 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article