Purpose -The purpose is to investigate the concepts of subculture, subculture of consumption and brand community with a view to better understanding these three groups and their distinct differences. Design/methodology/approach -The method relies on a literature review and a case study of sporting subculture. Using commentary from the surfing community as an example of subcultural groups we see how they define themselves against consumption oriented groups. Findings -Subcultures are completely different from brand communities (or subcultures of consumption) and while they can be said to share certain common traits the broad philosophical foci of these two groups are vastly incommensurate with one another. Practical implications -Marketing discourse has perpetually conflated subculture with forms of consumption, i.e. brand communities, yet they are different. By acknowledging and interrogating the key differences marketers may better apprehend the needs, character and activities of subcultural participants and market more strategically. Originality/value -By dissecting the differences between subculture, subculture of consumption and brand community, this paper offers a re-conceptualisation of these terms in marketing discourse. In doing so, this paper seeks to dispel some fundamental misapprehensions in marketing and offer an entirely fresh perspective on the value and meaning of subculture.

It would be valuable to consumer research to increase understanding of marginalized communities and their consumption experiences. This paper advances postcolonial analysis as useful in this respect. A review of postcolonialism shows a perspective that encompasses the experience of the subordinated and marginalized. Hybridity, an alternative version, the self/other divide and power of both the colonizing and colonized positions are key concepts in this lens. Shifting from the dominating view of imperialism, a postcolonial oeuvre offers a nuanced stance that gives voice to the history of the Other and recognition to their stories. Variations within this stream of theory are drawn out and the key aim of this paper is to explicate the value of the postcolonial view to consumer research. To this end two illustrative case studies of postcolonial African experience are offered: one French and one American. Sneaker consumption in African-American street culture traces themes of social alienation, self-identity, criminality and fanatical consumption through the acquisition of sneakers. This experience is contrasted with the experience of postcolonial African communities in France who use other forms of consumption to define their street identity. We conclude that a more nuanced reading of sneaker consumption is available through postcolonialism shedding new light on interpreting symbolic consumption, meaning making and identity expression in traditionally marginalized groups.

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to expand existing qualitative parameters in current marketing research discourse by integrating Barthesian theory into the study of subcultural marketplaces.Design/methodology/approachWhile essentially conceptual in nature, this paper adopts a comprehensive intertextual, semiotic approach which argues for the substantive investigation of the marketing text as a foundation for understanding consumption in a subcultural context.FindingsTo date, the integration of Barthesian intertextual theory has proved to be an effective method of interrogating subculturally‐oriented materials.Practical implicationsMarketers, in commercial contexts, will access a greater depth of insight into the subcultural market by applying an intertextual, semiotic framework as demonstrated in this paper.Originality/valueWhile marketing discourse has taken interest in semiotics, this has typically occurred via the work of US semiologists, rather than the French school in their organic form. This is one of the first papers to locate Barthes within the marketing paradigm as a potential analytical framework. The paper suggests ways in which his influential theories may be applied as a viable analytical tool in qualitative research.

Drawing on previous discussions of visual consumption in marketing, this paper uses two historical examples to examine visuality and the enduring effect of the Age of Enlightenment on visual consumption. Drawing on the French garden and the philosophical trope of the Molyneux Man, the manner in which the consumption experience is mediated and narrated through vision is considered. It is argued that cultural perspective and individual perception work in constant dialogue to produce an individual’s ability to consume, or ‘take in’, visual signs inherent to our world. From the Enlightenment, this interaction has characterized the contemporary consumer’s world, but, importantly for marketing communications, this becomes more significant in today’s burgeoning visual consumption experiences.

Purpose – This paper aims to expand current theories of globalisation to a consideration of its impact on the individual. Much work has been done on the impact of globalisation on social, political and economic structures. In this paper, globalisation, for the individual, reflects a re-conceptualisation of the Self/Other encounter. In order to explore this Self/Other dimension, the paper analyses the literary work of nineteenth-century writer Pierre Loti since his work begins to problematise this important motif. His work also provides insight into the effect on the individual when encountering the Other in a globalised context. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing from literary criticism, the paper adopts an interpretive approach. Using the fiction and non-fiction work of Pierre Loti, an integrated psychoanalytical, postcolonial analysis is conducted to draw out possible insights into how Loti conceptualises the Other and is thus transformed himself. Findings – The paper finds that the Self/Other encounter shifts in the era of globalisation. The blurring of the Self/Other is part of the impact of globalisation on the individual. Further, the paper argues that Loti was the first to problematise Self/Other at a point in history where the distinction seemed clear. Loti's work is instructive for tracing the dissolution of the Self/Other encounter since the themes and issues raised in his early work foreshadow our contemporary experience of globalisation. Research limitations/implications – This paper takes a specific view of globalisation through an interpretive lens. It also uses one specific body of work to answer the research question of what impact globalisation has on the individual. A broader sampling and application of theoretical strains out of the literary criticism canon would expand the parameters of this study. Originality/value – This paper makes an original contribution to current theorisations of globalisation in that it re-conceptualises classical understandings of the Self/Other divide. The finding that the Self/Other divide is altered in the current era of globalisation has impact for cultural and marketing theory since it re-focuses attention on the shifting nature of identity and how we encounter the Other in our daily existence.