Internal Brand Pilgrimage - A conceptualization of how brands with a heritage use corporate museums internally

Abstract: Purpose: The purpose is to explore the phenomenon of utilizing corporate museums in internal branding, in order to understand what they are, how they are used and why in the context of strategic brand management in general and brands with a heritage in particular. Methodology: A qualitative multiple case study with a constructionist and inductive approach has been executed. The case companies represent four Swedish brands with a heritage; Absolut Vodka, Hästens, IKEA and Volvo Cars. Theoretical Perspective: In order to develop theory and establish a new conceptual framework, the fields of corporate museums, internal branding and corporate heritage brands function as the three theoretical realms. Empirical Data: The empirical data consists of six observations of corporate museums, eight semi-structured interviews with managers and six unstructured discussions with tour guides and employees during the observations, as well as secondary data in terms of brochures, catalogues and corporate materials. Conclusions: Internal Brand Pilgrimage is an organized journey for corporate stakeholders, organized in the sense that there are internal branding motives for going to a corporate museum and that the content of brand heritage is communicated through live storytelling. The framework consists of five elements, representing Place, Journey, Pilgrims, Content and Motives.