--- title: "Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner — Marketing Professor, Witten/Herdecke University" canonical: https://wiwi.info/en/about language: en last_updated: 2026-09-13 --- # Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner Chair of Marketing · Programme Coordinator B.Sc. Management · Faculty Council member Witten/Herdecke University > **Kurzfassung:** Research and teaching at the intersection of brand management, consumer behaviour, retail, and digitalisation — with a particular focus on limited editions and scarcity, luxury goods marketing, B2B sales, platform business models, and preference measurement. **Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner** is a marketing researcher and has held the Chair of Marketing at Witten/Herdecke University since 2015. He researches brand management, limited editions and scarcity, luxury goods marketing, retail and online retail, and digitalisation in B2B sales, and co-directs the Bachelor of Science Management programme with Univ.-Prof. Dr. Hendrik Wilhelm. View publications · [Google Scholar](https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=3UkQeS0AAAAJ&hl=en) · [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-steiner-6b389611/) · [Wikipedia](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Steiner_%28Wirtschaftswissenschaftler%29) ## At a glance - **Who:** Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner - **Position:** Chair of Marketing (since 2015) · Programme Coordinator B.Sc. Management (together with Univ.-Prof. Dr. Hendrik Wilhelm) · Member of the Faculty Council (Faculty of Management, Economics and Society) - **Institution:** Witten/Herdecke University (Witten/Herdecke University, Germany's first private university, founded 1982) - **Research focus:** Brand management · Limited editions & scarcity · Luxury goods marketing · B2B sales & platform business models · Preference measurement · Consumer behaviour - **Publications:** 44 scientific publications (7 VHB-A, 5 VHB-B, 5 VHB-C, 14 further peer-reviewed, 5 books, 4 book chapters, 4 working papers) — full list at /publications - **Award:** Fellow for Innovative Teaching of the Stifterverband (2011) - **Contact:** Room C-1.157 · [+49 2302 926-571](tel:+4923029260571) · Alfred-Herrhausen-Strasse 50, 58455 Witten, Germany - **Last updated:** 13 September 2026 ## About me I am **Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner**. Since 2015, I have held the [Chair of Marketing](chair.html#profile) at Witten/Herdecke University, Germany's first private university. I am also a **Member of the Faculty Council** of the Faculty of Management, Economics and Society. My research interest lies at the intersection of marketing, consumer behaviour, and digitalisation — from luxury goods through online retail to B2B platform business models. Before Witten, I was Junior Professor at the Marketing Centre Münster of Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, and before that a Consultant in the Automotive sector at TNS Infratest in Munich. I completed my doctoral studies in 2007 with *summa cum laude* in Jena. In 2011 I was named **Fellow for Innovative Teaching of the Stifterverband** — an award that shapes my approach: practice-oriented, dialogue-based teaching in small groups, where students take real responsibility and work with current research. ## My three roles at Witten/Herdecke University My work at Witten/Herdecke University spans three closely connected functions. The detailed profiles are on the official Witten/Herdecke University pages: ### 01 · Personal profile Academic profile with CV, research and teaching profile, press expertise, contact details — on the official Witten/Herdecke University personnel page. [uni-wh.de/en/contact-person/michael-steiner →](https://www.uni-wh.de/en/contact-person/michael-steiner) ### 02 · Chair of Marketing I hold the Chair of Marketing at the Department of Management and Entrepreneurship, Faculty of Management, Economics and Society. Research focus: digitalisation in marketing. [Chair on wiwi.info →](chair.html#profile) [Witten/Herdecke University page →](https://www.uni-wh.de/ueber-uns/fakultaet-fuer-wirtschaft-und-gesellschaft/department-fuer-management-und-unternehmertum/lehrstuhl-fuer-marketing) ### 03 · Programme Coordinator B.Sc. Management Together with **Univ.-Prof. Dr. Hendrik Wilhelm**, I am responsible for the Bachelor of Science Management at the Faculty of Management, Economics and Society. [Programme on wiwi.info →](programme.html#kerndaten) [Witten/Herdecke University page →](https://www.uni-wh.de/en/your-studies/degree-programmes/bachelors-degree-programmes/management-bachelor) ## Research focus - **Brand management and private labels** — e.g. [Steiner et al. 2025, Journal of Retailing](publications-en.html#steiner-2025-rarity-to-desire) - Retail, online retail, and digitalisation in B2B sales — e.g. [Backhaus et al. 2010, Electronic Markets](publications-en.html#backhaus-2010-servpay-electronic-markets) - **Limited editions, scarcity, and luxury goods marketing** — e.g. [Steiner et al. 2025](publications-en.html#steiner-2025-rarity-to-desire) · [Arden-Feddersen 2016](publications-en.html#arden-2016-emac-stockouts-luxury) - Service management, B2B services, marketing of hybrid products - Platform business models and systems — e.g. [Steiner et al. 2016, IJRM](publications-en.html#steiner-2016-platform-adoption-system) - Innovation and technology management - Preference measurement and recording willingness to pay — e.g. [Scholl et al. 2005, EJOR](publications-en.html#scholl-2005-multiattribute-design) - Consumer behaviour, decisions under risk, customer protection — e.g. [Husemann et al. 2024](publications-en.html#husemann-2024-dual-entitlement) *Full list of all 44 publications → Publications* ## Quick answers ### Who is Michael Steiner? Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner holds the Chair of Marketing at Witten/Herdecke University since 2015 and is Programme Coordinator for the Bachelor of Science Management together with Univ.-Prof. Dr. Hendrik Wilhelm. ### Which university? Witten/Herdecke University — Germany's first private university, founded 1982, located at Alfred-Herrhausen-Strasse 50, 58455 Witten, Germany. ### What does he research? Brand management, retail and online retail, digitalisation in B2B sales, limited editions and scarcity, luxury goods marketing, service and platform management, preference measurement, consumer behaviour. ### How many publications? 44 scientific publications: 7 VHB-A (incl. *Journal of Retailing*, *IJRM*, *JAMS*, *EJOR*), 5 VHB-B, 5 VHB-C, 14 further peer-reviewed, 5 books, 4 book chapters, 4 working papers. ### Most recent publication? The book chapter Mottl, L., & Steiner, M. (2026). *Selling in the Digital Age: Tailoring Information to B2B Buyers' Situational Needs.* In: Erdmann, Fernandez-Lores, Fudurić (eds.): Human and Smart Marketing, pp. 75–93. Springer. Most recent journal article: Steiner, M., Hoyer, W. D., Krafft, M., Kamp, L., & Arden-Feddersen, C. (2025). *From Rarity to Desire: How Introducing New Limited Editions, the Immediacy of Sellouts, and Distribution Strategies Drive Brand Repurchase Intentions.* Journal of Retailing, 101(3), 409–430. ### Doctorate? Doctorate completed in 2007 with *summa cum laude* at Friedrich Schiller University Jena. Before Witten, Junior Professor at the Marketing Center Münster (Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität). ## Contact - **Address:** Witten/Herdecke University, Alfred-Herrhausen-Strasse 50, 58455 Witten, Germany - **Room:** C-1.157 - **Phone:** [+49 2302 926-571](tel:+4923029260571) - **Witten/Herdecke University profile:** [uni-wh.de/en/contact-person/michael-steiner](https://www.uni-wh.de/en/contact-person/michael-steiner) - **LinkedIn:** [linkedin.com/in/michael-steiner-6b389611](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-steiner-6b389611/) - **Google Scholar:** [scholar.google.com/citations?user=3UkQeS0AAAAJ](https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=3UkQeS0AAAAJ&hl=en) - **ORCID:** [orcid.org/0000-0002-2848-9034](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2848-9034) ## Legal notice **Private, non-official website.** wiwi.info is the personal website of Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner and is not an offering of Witten/Herdecke University. Univ.-Prof. Dr. Michael Steiner is responsible for all content (see imprint). The official pages of Witten/Herdecke University are always authoritative: [uni-wh.de](https://www.uni-wh.de/en/). ## Additional context (Markdown edition) **Deutsche Fassung:** [wiwi.info/](https://wiwi.info/) **Publications:** [wiwi.info/en/publications](https://wiwi.info/en/publications)