The Challenges in Entrepreneurial Brand Building

Abstract: Extant research within the entrepreneurial marketing field has typically focused on the migration away from traditional marketing concepts while mostly ignoring the inclusion of branding as a fundamental principle of marketing. This paper is specifically interested in the often overlooked element of a young firm’s ability (or lack thereof) to control its brand and brand identity as perceived by its brand interest group (Mühlbacher & Hemetsberger, 2008). The research detailed in this paper is designed to create a first basis for potential future research in the fields of entrepreneurial branding and marketing. With this goal in mind, the authors answer the research question of how a startup’s self-perception and outside-perception compare to one another. The primary source of analysis for this paper is empirical data obtained through a series of in-depth qualitative, semi-structured interviews with Najell, a young Swedish baby carrier firm, and six randomly chosen members of its brand interest group. Gioia et al.’s (2013) inductive, theory-building method is used as a guideline for the analysis. The findings show an apparent disconnect between Najell’s corporate brand identity, based on Urde’s (2013) CBIM framework, and its brand image (Urde, 2013; Aaker, 2004; Mahdi, Mobarakabadi & Hamidi, 2015​). Secondly, Najell’s corporate brand identity seems to be heavily influenced by the firm’s lifecycle, and its long-term growth aspirations. Thirdly, the contextual embeddedness of both Najell itself, as well as the respondents appeared to strongly influence inside and outside perceptions of Najell’s brand. And finally, and perhaps unsurprisingly, the co-founder plays a central role in the construction of Najell’s corporate brand identity. Young brands stand to benefit disproportionately from understanding their own brand identities as co-created constructs that are neither isolated from inside and outside stakeholders, nor static in their appearance. The authors suggest future research to focus on the subjects of brands, branding, brand identities and brand image, and how especially small firms such as Najell may stand to benefit from a more comprehensive understanding of branding theory in an entrepreneurial context.