ABSTRACT
Brands are deeply embedded in the meaning systems that we use to make sense of our contemporary world. Take, for example, the golden arches of McDonald’s or the Nike swoosh that we encounter on a daily basis. These symbols and their meanings are instantly recognizable around the globe, signifying respectively fast food Americana style, and empowerment through sports. Yet, not only do brands create their own unique culture, but they also draw on other cultural phenomena such as history, myths, rituals, artworks, the fi lm industry, theatre and television, to convey meanings that resonate in powerful ways with consumer’s lifestyles ( Schroeder and Salzer-Morling, 2006 ). This ongoing iteration, between contributing to culture and drawing from it, makes brand culture a complex and multi-faceted phenomena. It is much more than just a clever name or logo, and also more than the implementation of a successful marketing strategy. Importantly,
brand culture is a living entity that evolves and responds to the dynamics of the marketplace. Brand culture is continuously (re)created as the various parties that have an interest in the brand – companies, employees, culture industries, intermediaries, customers – relate stories around their experiences of the brand ( Holt, 2004 ). The strength of a brand’s culture lies in the collective perception about it, rather than the psychological aspects of an individual’s response to the brand. To begin to understand brand culture we need to break down the traditional barriers that exist between internal and external aspects of organizations, and between separate organizational functions such as human resource and marketing management. To appreciate the underpinning complexities of brand culture we need a cross-disciplinary lens that enables a synthesis, rather than a division, of perspectives.
