Origination: The Geographies of Brands and Branding

Chapter EightConclusions

Introduction

From the enduring reputation and renown of the pioneering engineering history of north east England and its contemporary resonance, where goods and services commodities are from and are associated with – and where they are perceived to be from and associated with – has been the central concern of Origination. Engaging the history and dramatic and pervasive rise of the brands and branding of goods and services commodities, Origination has addressed the relative dearth of attention to their interrelations with spaces and places. Although a literature is emerging, the geographies of brands and branding have been lacking conceptualization and theorization, analytical and methodological approaches, and a stock of empirical research. The need for critical enquiry has become acute. Internationalization, even globalization, has questioned notions of ‘Country of Origin’ in articulating the meaning and value of goods and services commodities (Phau and Prendergast 1999). ‘Origin identifiers’ (Papadopoulos 1993: 10) are increasingly used in marketing activities. Interest in commodity origins, provenance and transparency has grown substantially (Beverland 2009). Actors involved in brands and branding have become more sophisticated in their thinking, strategies, frameworks, techniques and practices.

Demonstrating the inescapable geographies of brands and branding, Origination develops understanding and explanation of what such geographical associations ...