Short answer

Designers and marketers should prioritize creating brand touchpoints that evoke positive emotions and foster a sense of connection, as this emotional bond is a key driver of sustained customer loyalty.

Field: Innovation & Markets
Source: International Journal of Business, Economics, and Social Development (2026)
Method: Quantitative Explanatory Research using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM-PLS)
Sample: 192 participants
Evidence: Strong effect

Cultivating emotional attachment, or 'brand love,' is crucial for fostering long-term customer loyalty in the competitive coffee shop market, acting as a bridge between initial trust and sustained patronage. This innovation & markets research insight is drawn from a 2026 study published in International Journal of Business, Economics, and Social Development. Using Quantitative explanatory research using structural equation modelling (sem-pls) with 192 participants, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: Designers and marketers should prioritize creating brand touchpoints that evoke positive emotions and foster a sense of connection, as this emotional bond is a key driver of sustained customer loyalty.

Study

Innovation & MarketsNew This WeekStrong effect

Brand Love Drives Loyalty: A Mediator for Local Coffee Shops

International Journal of Business, Economics, and Social Development · 2026

Key Findings

01Brand trust has a significant positive influence on brand love.
02Brand love has a significant positive influence on brand loyalty.
03Brand trust has a significant positive influence on brand loyalty.
04Brand love acts as a significant mediator between brand trust and brand loyalty.

Application

Design takeaway

How to apply

When designing customer experiences or marketing campaigns for businesses, consider how to intentionally build emotional connections and foster a sense of 'brand love' to enhance customer retention.

Project actions

01When researching customer loyalty, consider exploring the role of emotional connection alongside functional attributes.
02Use surveys with Likert scales to measure abstract concepts like trust and love, and statistical methods like regression or SEM to analyze their relationships.

Method & Evidence

AimHow does brand trust influence brand loyalty in local coffee shops, and to what extent does brand love mediate this relationship?

MethodQuantitative Explanatory Research using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM-PLS)

ProcedureA quantitative approach was employed, collecting data from 192 active customers of Kopi Roemah Kesambi via a Likert scale questionnaire. The data was then analyzed using SEM-PLS to examine the direct and indirect effects of brand trust and brand love on brand loyalty.

Sample192 participants

ContextLocal coffee shop industry

Variables

IVBrand Trust

DVBrand Loyalty

CVBrand Love (as mediator), Customer Demographics, Coffee Shop Atmosphere, Product Quality

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths

+Employs a robust quantitative methodology (SEM-PLS) to analyze complex relationships.
+Addresses a specific research gap concerning the mediating role of brand love in local coffee shop contexts.

Limitations

The findings might be subjective and influenced by individual customer perceptions of 'love' and 'trust', making it difficult to quantify precisely.

Reliability & validity

The use of a Likert scale questionnaire and SEM-PLS analysis provides a structured approach to measuring constructs and assessing the reliability and validity of the proposed model.

Think critically

To what extent can 'brand love' be intentionally designed, and what are the ethical considerations of fostering such emotional attachments?

Design Principles

"Emotional resonance is a critical component of brand loyalty, often mediating the relationship between functional trust and sustained customer engagement."

In a market saturated with choices, simply building trust is insufficient for securing repeat business. This research highlights that designing experiences that evoke emotional connection is a strategic imperative for businesses aiming for sustainable customer retention and growth.

What This Means for Your Design

For a coffee shop to keep customers coming back, it's not enough for them to just trust the brand. They also need to feel a special connection or 'love' for it, which makes them loyal.

How to use in your project

1.This research can inform the investigation into how user emotions impact product adoption and retention, providing a theoretical framework for analyzing user experience design choices.

Add to My Project

Quick Cite

Paragraph starter

This study demonstrates that in the competitive coffee shop sector, fostering brand loyalty requires more than just building trust; it necessitates cultivating a deep emotional connection, or 'brand love,' which acts as a significant mediator. This suggests that design strategies should focus on creating emotionally resonant experiences to ensure sustained customer engagement and retention.

Source

International Journal of Business, Economics, and Social Development

The Influence Of Brand Trust On Brand Loyalty With Brand Love As Mediator (Case Study Of Kopi Roemah Kesambi)

journal · 2026

View source

Questions About This Research

What does the research say about brand love drives loyalty: a mediator for local coffee shops?: Designers and marketers should prioritize creating brand touchpoints that evoke positive emotions and foster a sense of connection, as this emotional bond is a key driver of sustained customer loyalty. Evidence: International Journal of Business, Economics, and Social Development (2026).
Why does "Brand Love Drives Loyalty: A Mediator for Local Coffee Shops" matter for design?: In a market saturated with choices, simply building trust is insufficient for securing repeat business. This research highlights that designing experiences that evoke emotional connection is a strategic imperative for businesses aiming for sustainable customer retention and growth.
How can designers apply this research?: Designers and marketers should prioritize creating brand touchpoints that evoke positive emotions and foster a sense of connection, as this emotional bond is a key driver of sustained customer loyalty.
What were the main findings?: Brand trust has a significant positive influence on brand love.. Brand love has a significant positive influence on brand loyalty.. Brand trust has a significant positive influence on brand loyalty.. Brand love acts as a significant mediator between brand trust and brand loyalty.
What research method was used?: Quantitative Explanatory Research using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM-PLS) with 192 participants.
How strong is the evidence?: Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2026 journal from International Journal of Business, Economics, and Social Development.
What should I do differently in my next project?: When designing customer experiences or marketing campaigns for businesses, consider how to intentionally build emotional connections and foster a sense of 'brand love' to enhance customer retention.
What are the limitations?: The study is specific to one local coffee shop and may not be generalizable to all coffee shop contexts or other industries.