The interrelationships between product quality and service quality: An exploratory study in furniture industry

Abstract

This thesis examines the interrelationships between product quality and service quality in the furniture industry. Customersa?? experience with a retail store selling furniture is composed of three stages: pre-transaction, transaction, and post-transaction, where product quality and service quality play different roles at each stage. Two issues are of concern: first, how does the importance of product quality and service quality in affecting customersa?? behavioral intention change from one stage to another? Second, how does the interrelationship between the two quality aspects change from one stage to another? A three-month exploratory study conduced in one established furniture store reveals interesting preliminary insights. A large-sample customer survey conducted subsequently suggest that: (i) product quality is more important in affecting customersa?? behavioral intention at pre-transaction and transaction stages, while service quality is more important at post-transaction stage; (ii) service quality positively affects customersa?? perception of product quality at all the three stages.