Masstige Consumption and Identity Reframing Among Return Migrants in India: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

This study examines how return migrants’ resort to masstige consumption for the construction of hybrid identities upon returning from metropolitan cities to their Tier 2 and Tier 3 hometowns. While research to date has primarily focused on economic and structural considerations in migration, the symbolic and psychosocial processes of return migration remain an underexplored field. This study, through the branded consumption of masstige products, a rare combination of aspirational appeal with affordable pricing, investigates the dynamics through which individuals negotiate the rural-urban tension in their identity and assert the continuity of their urban exposure. A qualitative approach was employed, utilizing a hybrid ethno-netnographic methodology that incorporated narrative interviews, participant observation, and visual ethnography. Using purposive sampling, 12 individuals were recruited between the ages of 20 and 35. The individuals had returned to towns such as Varanasi, Ranchi, Bhubaneswar, and Patna after spending three or more years in Tier 1 metros. However, filter questions were asked to ensure that individuals had experienced urban professional or student life, had been active on social media, and had engaged in recognizable branded consumption at least during or after migration to tier-I metros; for instance, Zara, H&M, OnePlus, Mamaearth. The study was thematically analyzed through Braun and Clarke’s six-phase approach and developed the aggregate dimension. The results revealed two separate types of identity strategies. The facilitators included aspirational signaling attached to visible brands and associated narratives of moral consumption (e.g., clean beauty, smart-buy ethics), aesthetic relatability, peer validation, and symbolic community repositioning. Barriers included fear of judgment related to vanity, algorithmic pressure, platform fatigue, gendered performance norms, and skepticism about the relevance of the metro-brand status in semi-rural contexts. The study proposes the term “Masstige as Return Power” to describe how branded consumption becomes identity capital and reinvestment capital following return. The study, therefore, makes a conceptual contribution to consumer culture theory and symbolic interactionism and provides practical implications for marketers and policymakers engaged in the semi-urban Indian context.