Brand Trust on Brand Love in the Automotive Industry

The Mediating Role of Brand Equity_

Abstract

This study examines how brand trust influences brand love through the mediating role of brand equity in Indonesia's automotive industry. Drawing on Customer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) theory and emotional branding, data from 374 automotive consumers in Jakarta were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings reveal that brand trust significantly influences brand equity (β = 0.707, p < 0.001), and brand equity significantly influences brand love (β = 0.762, p < 0.001). However, the direct effect of brand trust on brand love is not significant (β = 0.022, p = 0.678). Brand equity significantly mediates this relationship (β = 0.539, p < 0.001). These findings suggest that brand equity serves as a critical mechanism through which consumer trust translates into emotional attachment. The study contributes to emotional branding literature and highlights the strategic importance of strengthening brand equity to foster brand love in the automotive industry.