Transformational retailing and the emergence of a modern brand

Liberty of London, 1875–1900

Bibliographic Data

ID22124754
AuthorsNicholas Alexander (0000-0001-7456-3541, Lancaster University, corresponding author), Anne Marie Doherty (0000-0002-5480-814X, University of Strathclyde), J Cronin (0000-0003-3842-3546, Lancaster University)
Year2020
Volume6
Issue2
Pages78-96
Publication date2020-05-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueHistory of Retailing and Consumption (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2373-5171 • E-ISSN: 2373-518X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/2373518x.2020.1859926
OpenAlexW3110698615
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited21

This article considers the role of a transformational retail setting in the development of an iconic brand identity in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. The focus of this research is Liberty of London. Through experiential engagement and augmented admission, Liberty created a retail environment that challenged existing practices. Coupled with the development of a brand identity enhanced through authoritative advocacy and consumers’ allegorical encounters with the firm’s core brand message, Liberty achieved the symbolic substantiation of a distinct taste regime through the market-mediation of authenticity. We discuss how brand representation in a transformational retail setting in the metropolitan market of the late nineteenth century legitimised and structured consumer expectations in a context of growing middle class demand for merchandise with enhanced aesthetic qualities and associated lifestyle values

Advertising · Aesthetics · Art · Business · Mediation · Metropolitan area · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Social science · Sociology · Taste · Transformational leadership · Culinary Culture and Tourism · Fashion and Cultural Textiles · History · Law · Psychology · Wine Industry and Tourism · Marketing