Brands play a crucial role in business competition but have also become an important social phenomenon. Brands are represented by signs and symbols, gestures and images. They stand for values, hopes and desires, for experiences and expectations. They evoke emotions and associations.
"The art of branding" traces the career of Pablo Picasso as an exemplary illustration of the art of branding.
Brands identify products and services. Yet a brand is much more than a "brand name" or a "brand logo" on a "brand-name product." Brands reflect individual and collective desires that go far beyond a product's utilitarian benefit. Brands are found in every business and in every market. The sense of fascination they evoke is the key to the success of such brands. Brands & Desires presents 25 vivid examples of the link between brands and desires, beginning with The Rolling Stones ( coolness), and continuing on to include Apple computers (religion), De Beers diamonds (fidelity), Ikea furnishings (growing up), Freitag bags (individuality), Marlborough cigarettes (freedom), Benetton clothing (justice), Red Bull soft drink (action) and Greenpeace (resistance).
