To explore the tangibility of brand meaning of local food brands from a consumer perspective.

This study will explore the tangibility of brand meaning of local food brands from a consumer perspective. The conceptual framework is derived from Hirschman’s layers of meaning (1980a, 1998) and the direct sensory, idiosyncratic, subcultural and cultural labels, together with the tangible attributes and intangible associations, provide key units of analysis. Hirschman’s earlier attention was to move away from a more product focused or quantitative market research approach to understanding consumers and she was instrumental in a movement that generated a wealth of literature around the intangible associations - the cultural, social and psychological contributions towards brand meaning. However this study focuses on the more neglected tangible attributes to further understand their contribution to brands in the 21st century. Brand meaning resides in the minds of consumers (Batey 2008) so this research will be explored from their perspective. It adopts an interpretivist approach to uncover subjective meanings held by consumers and their connections with brands. Family households with older children aged 10-15 tend to be the greatest consumers in this area and form the sample population (Mintel 2011). Qualitative approaches such as participant observation supported by in-depth interviews are adopted. This study seeks to make an original contribution by giving insights into a more neglected area which explores the tangible attributes of brand meaning

To explore the brand meaning of local food brands.

This paper introduces the author’s doctoral thesis which explores the tangibility of brand meaning of local food brands. The conceptual framework is derived from Hirschman’s layers of meaning (1980a, 1998) and of specific interest is the tangible (direct sensory and functional) as the intangible (idiosyncratic, subcultural and cultural) has attracted considerable scholarly attention. Brand meaning resides in the minds of consumers (Batey, 2008) so this research will be explored from their perspective. It adopts an interpretivist approach to uncover subjective meanings held by consumers and their connections with brands. Qualitative approaches such as participant observation supported by in-depth interviews are adopted. The research context is local food as there has been a significant groundswell of interest in this category over the last few years around local sourcing, food miles, health and ethical concerns (Grobel, 2013). This makes an original contribution by giving insights into a more neglected area which explores the tangibility of brand meaning

To explore the tangibility of brand meaning of local food brands.

This paper introduces the author’s doctoral thesis which explores the tangibility of brand meaning of local food brands. The conceptual framework is derived from Hirschman’s layers of meaning (1980a, 1998) and the tangible (direct sensory and functional) and the intangible (idiosyncratic, subcultural and cultural) labels provide key units of analysis. The latter has received much scholarly attention exemplified by Brown et al., (2003) and Escalas and Bettman, (2005), so this focuses on the more neglected tangible layer, to understand its contribution to brand meaning. Brand meaning resides in the minds of consumers (Batey 2008) so this research will be explored from their perspective. It adopts an interpretivist approach to uncover subjective meanings held by consumers and their connections with brands. Family households with older children aged 10-15 form the sample population (Mintel 2011). Qualitative approaches such as participant observation supported by in-depth interviews are adopted. This makes an original contribution by giving insights into a more neglected area which explores the tangibility of brand meaning. The research context is local food as there has been a significant groundswell of interest in this category over the last few years around local sourcing, food miles, health and ethical concerns (Grobel 2013)

Brand Identity and Brand Image in Film Brands: A case study of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World

This study explores brand identity, brand image and their relationship within the modern film brand of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World (JKRWW). The research builds upon literature into media and film brands (e.g. O'Reilly and Kerrigan 2013; Andreea 2013; Farhana 2014) as well as applying the body of academia around the relationship of brand identity and brand image (e.g. Aaker 1991; Kapferer 2004; de Chernatony 1999; Nandan 2005) to the area of film brands. A qualitative methodology is adopted consisting of ten in-depth interviews, three with film managers to understand brand identity, and seven with film consumers to understand brand image. Findings reveal the importance of the writer in the creation of JKRWW’s film brand identity and highlight how consumers relate to the brand’s characters regarding the brand image. There is a strong relationship between identity and image within the JKRWW brand which is to be recommended within film branding