European Journal of Economic Studies

367-392

Authors: Murad Harasheh, Stefano Gatti

The present study aims at investigating the relationship between Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) variables mainly underpricing on one hand, and the brand value measures on the other. Our final data set is 104 international brand companies. We implement empirical approach using hierarchical OLS regression and descriptive statistics. We show that underpricing is positively related to brand value, which emphasizes the marketing role of going public and underpricing in enhancing brand equity through the product market, which additionally confirms some information asymmetry models. We also find that on average brand companies have not been recognized as brands at the IPO time. Moreover, we show the positive role of private equity in enhancing brand value, additionally, the non-linear association between underpricing and brand value is not evident. Finally, we draw some policy implication and suggestions for future research.

405-414

Authors: Sulejman Hibić, Mersid Poturak

With the modern development of economics and marketing, brands are having a more important place in our lives each day. We may neglect it, but we all find brands extremely attractive, whether it is because they make us feel wealthier or more self-confident, because we think they have a higher quality than generic ones, or for any other reason. Inspired by this psychological impact of brands on life and consumers, in this case consumer purchasing, the purpose of this article was to find out whether and how brands impact consumers’ decision-making processes and do they (and why) prefer branded products over generic. The data for this article was collected in the form of an online survey. 225 respondents took part in filling out the survey in the period of one month. 125 of the respondents were male, while 100 were female, all between the ages of 18 to 60. The results of the survey show that there is a high impact of branding on consumer decision-making processes and their purchasing decisions. More precisely said, consumers prefer buying branded products to generic for many reasons, and their choice is affected by the status of the product.

421-428

Authors: Galina Romanova, Sergey Romanov, Marina Maznichenko

The article is devoted to comparative analysis of Russian and European experience of training of personnel for the sphere of tourism and hospitality and provision of interconnection of the system of professional education with labor market. The purpose of the article is to determine the best European practices that could be implemented in Russia for the purpose of provision of integrated educational environment, expansion of educational and economic cooperation, and actualization of current Russian educational standards and programs. The objects of the research are professional and educational standards, educational programs, qualification requirements, service instructions, and results of labor market analysis. The authors perform comparative analysis of qualification requirements to specialists with higher education in the sphere of tourism and hospitality in Russia and Europe, goals, content, methods and technologies of their training in higher educational establishments, and educational standards and programs. As a result of the research, the authors came to the conclusion that it is necessary to reconsider the competences formed with graduates of specialties “Hotel business” and “Tourism” and bring them in correspondence with requirements of employers, tendencies of labor market, and the best European practices.

435-443

Authors: Emmanuel Kwame Yeboah, Daniel Marboye Quaye, Samuel Buame, Michael Asiedu

Ghana has witnessed burgeoning expansion of the micro-finance sector in the past decade. Most of these new microfinance institutions have erupted from people who were previous employees of traditional banks (spin-offs). This study seeks to investigate the triggers of these individual spin-off companies within the Ghanaian microfinance sector. Additionally, it will assess the relationship between spin-off and parent firms, and its likely impact on the spin- off firm. The study employed the qualitative method to seek a detailed and in-depth analysis to understand the issue by way of in-depth interviews. The purposive and snowballing sampling approach were used to select the microfinance spin-off firms, whereas the snowballing approach was used to identify more spin-offs within the sector. Five respondents were interviewed due to theoretical saturation and difficulty in finding any more spin-offs. Three major themes emerged from the study as triggers/drivers of spin-offs in the micro-finance sector. These included necessity, opportunity and need for self-actualization. It is recommended that the spin-off phenomenon should be encouraged to accelerate entrepreneurship and innovation in the Ghanaian economy. Results from this study have implications for research, education and policy.