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Condemned to authenticity
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Orientador(es)
Resumo(s)
Corporate branding has long been shaped by the assumption of a fixed, essential pathway towards an ‘authentic moral identity,’ reinforcing essentialist thought. However, as corporate brands increasingly navigate complex landscapes, essentialism reduces morality and authenticity to a set of criteria, overlooking its subjective and emergent nature. This conceptual paper critiques essentialist thought in corporate branding, arguing that conscientious corporate brands engage in a process of becoming worthy of moral consideration, which resonates with existentialist philosophy. Existentialism shelves predetermined essences and confronts human existence by emphasizing the primacy of authentic constructed meaning, (inter)subjective experience, freedom, and responsibility. What could existentialism mean for authentic corporate brands? And how can corporate brands pursue their true authentic self? By framing corporate brands as ‘condemned to authenticity’—in a state of perpetual becoming—we propose an existentialist rethinking of authenticity. This lens reshapes corporate branding towards nested, emergent phenomena, offering tenets grounded in existentialist thought, and addressing both theoretical and practical implications for brand orchestration.
Descrição
Grimm, N., Sahhar, Y., Moss, C., & Henseler, J. (2026). Condemned to authenticity: corporate branding through an existentialist lens. Journal of Brand Management, 33, 138-153. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41262-025-00396-x --- %ABS2% --- We are thankful for the constructive and helpful comments of the conference participants at the Global Brand Conference 2024 in Edinburgh, UK. While preparing this study, we used Grammarly Pro to improve the readability and language of the manuscript. After using the tool, the authors have reviewed and edited the content as needed and take full responsibility for the publication’s content. This work was supported by national funds through FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia), under the project UIDB/04152/2020 (https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDB/04152/2020)—Centro de Investigação em Gestão de Informação (MagIC)/NOVA IMS.
Palavras-chave
Corporate branding Existentialism Authenticity Brand-for-itself Organizational becoming Strategy and Management Marketing