PENGARUH BRANDING PRODUK TERHADAP LOYALITAS PELANGGAN MINUMAN SARI BUAH (BGS GROUP) DI DESA BULULAWANG KECAMATAN BULULAWANG KABUPATEN MALANG

Abstract

The development of the ready-to-drink beverage and fruit juice industries in Indonesia shows increasing competition in line with changes in consumer lifestyles that increasingly prioritize convenience, taste, and product image. Local fruit juice products such as those produced by the BGS Group in Bululawang Village have the potential to grow, but face challenges in building competitiveness at the local level. In building consumer image, value, and emotional attachment to a brand, branding is necessary, while loyalty is measured multidimensionally, including repurchase, recommendation, and affective commitment. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the effect of product branding on customer loyalty to BGS Group fruit juice drinks in Bululawang Village, Bululawang District, Malang Regency. The approach used is quantitative with an explanatory research method. The research sample consisted of 70 respondents determined by accidental sampling technique. Data collection was conducted through a Likert scale questionnaire (1–5), and the data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling-Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS).

The results show that product branding has a positive and significant effect on customer loyalty, with a path coefficient value of 0.166 and a p-value of 0.009 (<0.05). This indicates that the stronger the image and trust in the BGS product brand, the higher the level of customer loyalty. The R-Square value of 0.739 indicates that the research model is able to explain 73.9% of the variation in customer loyalty.