ABSTRACT
It is well understood that brand communities have a strong narrative component. Storytelling, by both the marketer and the consumer, fosters the construction of a larger than life brand mythology and allows consumers to insert themselves into this mythology. Recent inquiries have suggested that these mythologies frequently contain ethereal elements. Brand communities are the site of many magico-religious behaviours. Aspects of religiosity have been seen in brand communities centred on Apple Macintosh (Belk and Tumbat, 2002; Kahney, 2004), Apple Newton (Muñiz and Schau, 2005), Saab (Muñiz and O’Guinn, 2001), Star Trek (Kozinets, 2001), Star Wars (Brown, Kozinets, and Sherry, 2003), Xena: Warrior Princess (Schau and Muñiz, 2004), and the X-Files (Kozinets, 1997). Aspects of religiosity are also common in celebrity fan communities, such as those centred on Barry Manilow (O’Guinn, 1991) or Cliff Richards (Caldwell and Henry, 2006), and even in more generic entertainment communities, such as those centred on headbangers (Henry and Caldwell, 2006).
