HOW SENSORY MARKETING SHAPES FRESH FOOD PURCHASE DECISIONS: THE MEDIATING ROLES OF PERCEIVED QUALITY AND BRAND AWARENESS IN SUPERMARKET RETAILING IN CAN THO CITY, VIETNAM

Abstract

 This study investigates how sensory marketing influences consumers’ fresh food purchase decisions in supermarkets in Can Tho
City, Vietnam, an emerging market where modern retail formats are expanding rapidly. Drawing on the Stimulus – Organism – Response framework, the study examines how five sensory stimuli (sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste) shape purchase decisions through two internal responses: perceived quality and brand awareness. Data were collected in December 2025 from 203 supermarket shoppers using face-to-face surveys and analyzed using PLS-SEM. The results indicate that all five sensory stimuli positively influence both perceived quality and brand awareness. Perceived quality exerts a stronger influence on fresh food purchase decisions than brand awareness. Mediation analysis further reveals that perceived quality significantly mediates the effects of touch, taste, and sound, whereas brand awareness consistently mediates the relationships between all sensory stimuli and purchase decisions. These
findings suggest that consumers rely primarily on direct sensory experiences to evaluate fresh food quality, while multisensory cues simultaneously strengthen supermarket brand awareness. The study extends sensory marketing research by demonstrating the distinct mediating roles of perceived quality and brand awareness in an emerging-market retail context. From a managerial perspective, supermarket retailers should prioritize tactile interaction, product sampling, and  integrated multisensory experiences to enhance perceived quality, strengthen brand awareness, and encourage fresh food purchases.