Customer incivility: cause and effect in the food and beverage industry in Vietnam

Purpose Customer incivility is a key phenomenon with various harmful consequences for businesses, particularly in the food and beverage industry. This study investigated the antecedents of this issue and explored its outcomes for frontline employees in Vietnam. Design/methodology/approach This study used quantitative methodology to survey 780 participants who frequently experienced customer incivility in cafés and bubble tea shops. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the data. Findings The results revealed three antecedents of customer incivility – employee incivility, selling and customer orientation – as well as outcomes such as revenge motivation, emotional exhaustion, service sabotage and job performance, along with two mediating effects. Practical implications Managers can create and enhance additional training classes with varied curricula for different staff groups to foster their perspectives and understand an organization's customer orientation, eliminating vengeance motives, emotional strain, service sabotage and workplace performance. Originality/value This study emphasizes the importance of customer incivility and how it can be minimized by examining its causes and consequences in Vietnamese cafés and bubble tea shops.