Purpose The increased practitioner and academic interest in negative brand phenomena highlight the need for the development of practical scales to be used for empirical investigations. Therefore, this paper aims to draw on existing conceptualisations to provide a theoretically grounded yet practically oriented scale for examining brand avoidance and its protocols. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a sample of 575 consumers from two developing countries to create a parsimonious brand avoidance scale. Partial least squares structural equation modelling is used to analyse the data through a systematic formative measurement approach Findings This paper finds brand avoidance to be a multidimensional, second-order construct with five first-order dimensions: moral avoidance, identity avoidance, deficit–value avoidance, experiential avoidance and advertising-related avoidance. The paper further validates this scale by testing with non-purchase intention and identifies its positive relationship with brand avoidance. Originality/value This study fulfils the calls in the literature to provide a measurable scale for studying negative brand phenomena in consumer–brand relationship research.