The Brands Blog
News and opinion from the Group and its supportersGuest blog: Range resets – is a “top down” assessment needed of the role of brands?
A common retailer action in today’s competitive environment is to look for above the normal level of range efficiency, sometimes called a “reset”. Of course, a core task of category management is to identify the “right” range for any category to optimize...
Guest blog: GSCOP – Transformational regulation
The Groceries Supply Code of Practice (GSCOP) has fundamentally transformed relationships between large grocery retailers and suppliers. No longer can such a retailer simply ignore an issue brought to its attention where it can be shown to be in conflict with GSCOP,...
Empowering brands large and small through the power of digital
“The digital age is providing new, exciting opportunities for brands, consumers and society, by giving us the means to open up access for business, large and small,” said Simon Johnson, Director of Media at Amazon UK at the Brand Evening hosted by the...
Understanding cultural meaning to strengthen brands
Branded companies are looking beyond traditional methods in marketing to make sure their products are clearly and quickly understood and have maximum stand-out in a crowded marketplace.
Building brand emotion
Brands rest in our hearts and minds. Familiar products are instantly recognisable and understood, triggered in our brains by heuristics (signals or shortcuts) that summon up past experiences and knowledge to guide our choices and purchasing. The favoured...
Supermarket range reviews affect new product launches
According to IRI’s latest study into the state of new product development (NPD), the number of new branded grocery items decreased by 8.4% in the last year, this reduction lead to losses of £99.6m in value sales for the retailers. The decline started in...
Leading for Britain – How Britain’s brands transform Brexit into Brentrance
We all have our favourite brands, whether shopping for groceries (perhaps Innocent smoothies, Dorset cereals, Robinsons Lemon Barley Water or HP Sauce), clothes (Hackett, Superdry, Charles Tyrwhitt, Stella McCartney, Hunter) or cars (Mini, Land Rover or,...
The sincerest form of flattery?
We hear a lot these days about just how amazing the human brain is. Its capacity, complexity and plasticity are constantly paraded in the news and on TV shows. As a neuroscientist, I need little convincing about the 3lb wonder that lives inside our...
The economic importance of brands – seven reasons why brands (still) really matter
In 2004, we wrote an article on the economic importance of brands. The last thirteen years have seen dramatic changes in the world of brands but scepticism remains strong. We believe that brands are essential to consumers and add value to companies and the marketplace overall. Here we review the original seven reasons why brands matter to our economy.
The value of brands
That brands are valuable is not a universally-held truth. Some consider them smoke and mirrors to sustain high prices, catalysts for unnecessary consumption or vehicles of cultural homogenisation. Others think and act differently, particularly if specific brands rather than brands collectively are considered. To them, their brand is a font of understanding, a frequently-used tool, a preferred choice, perhaps part of their self-expression and often worth a premium.