PurposeAs Generation Y is considered to be a lucrative segment for emerging devices, this study investigates the effect of emotional brand attachment, from the brand romance perspective, on brand loyalty of Generation Y smartphone users. Furthermore, this study examines gender differences in the same relationship.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopted a cross-sectional survey method and data was collected from 300 respondents. Data was analyzed using the structural equation modelling (SEM) approach and multi-group analysis was performed to examine gender differences in the model.FindingsResults revealed that all three aspects of brand romance (pleasure, arousal and dominance) have a positive impact on smartphone brand loyalty. It further denotes that the relationship between brand romance and brand loyalty differs from males to females.Originality/valueThis study makes a significant contribution by examining emotional attachment and brand loyalty of Generation Y consumers, which has been less investigated. Furthermore, both attitudinal and behavioral brand loyalty has been considered in this study, which has largely been overlooked in similar studies. Examining the gender difference in the above relationship is an additional contribution.

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