The traditional view of inter-firm dynamics suggests that relationships are either competitive or cooperative in nature. However, it is apparent that in practice, firms can compete and cooperate with each other at the same time. The term used to refer to a relationship between two firms that simultaneously involves both competition and cooperation is "coopetition." Although there is evidence to suggest that organizations have been involved in coopetitive relationships for some considerable time, it is only relatively recently that the subject has found increased favor in the academic literature. It would appear, however, that the literature concerning coopetition is still limited in scope, and in order to address the issue, this paper presents an agenda for researchers interested in the subject of coopetition. The agenda is generated by reconciling a review of the literature on coopetition with a similar review of the literature relating to competition and cooperation. The agenda also incorporates two innovative ideas based on anecdotal evidence and personal observations. According to Bengtsson and Kock (2003), coopetition is "a situation where competitors simultaneously cooperate and compete with each other." It is 11 Keith Walley is head of the Business Management and Marketing Group, Harper

Purpose – With brands being an important source of competitive advantage, knowledge of branding is needed to inform their management. After\ud reviewing the literature, the article aims to report the findings of a case study that investigated the role of branding in the industrial purchase of\ud agricultural tractors in the UK. The study’s overall conclusion is that branding can play an important role in industrial purchase decisions.\ud Design/methodology/approach – Various attributes, together with levels of these attributes, were identified from the literature and a series of semistructured\ud interviews with three farmers and farm contractors. Subsequently, conjoint analysis was employed to reveal how purchasers made their\ud purchase decision. A total of 428 farmers and farm contractors (a 28.7 per cent response rate) ranked 25 cards that had been constructed to profile\ud various hypothetical tractor designs.\ud Findings – Five attributes appeared from the literature review and interviews – brand name, price, dealer proximity, quality of dealer’s service, and\ud buyer’s experience of the dealer. The conjoint analysis revealed that brand accounts for 38.95 per cent of the purchase decision, ahead of price (25.98\ud per cent) and service (14.90 per cent). The importance of brand varies according to the tractor brand. Also, the overall utility varies, with John Deere and\ud New Holland brand names appearing as marketing assets and Valtra, Massey Ferguson, and Case IH as marketing liabilities. Among the study’s other\ud findings are that UK tractor buyers are brand loyal.\ud Research limitations/implications – The study focuses on tractors in the UK, so while it provides an insight into the role of branding in an industrial\ud purchase situation, further research is required in other product categories before the findings can be generalised.\ud Practical implications – Manufacturers and distributors need to maintain a strong image. Also, they may charge higher prices for tractors, using the\ud extra revenue to reinforce their brand image. On-farm demonstration of new tractors is suggested as an experiential marketing strategy. Special\ud attention should be given to the location of dealers and the service they provide.\ud Originality/value – Research concerning branding in an industrial purchase context is limited, dated, or contradictory. This article contributes with\ud empirical findings on industrial brand management in an important and relevant context

In recent years, quality assurance schemes have grown considerably in number and scope. Several useful benefits have been claimed for them including their value as marketing advantages. However, there appears to be a paucity of published research to support this claim. This paper, therefore, seeks to substantiate the claim that quality assurance schemes represent useful marketing advantages as well as determining the magnitude of the advantage. The study is based on conjoint analysis as it is argued that this is a more realistic and therefore, appropriate research technique than the direct elicitation approach embodied in simply asking consumers for their opinions concerning quality assurance schemes. The paper concludes that quality assurance is an influence on the consumer decision process for mince beef and in addition provides an indication as to its relative importance. It also speculates on the implications for quality assurance schemes in general.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of a research study that sought to identify the key dimensions of luxury from a UK consumers’ perspective. Design/methodology/approach – The project was empirical in nature and based on a two-stage methodology that involved a series of depth interviews with consumers and a street intercept survey of 131 consumers in the UK. Findings – The project found that UK consumers appear to recognise five dimensions of luxury (affect, characteristics, status, gifting and involvement). Research limitations/implications – The main limitation was a small sample size and limited statistical significance. Practical implications – The paper should usefully focus the attention and efforts of managers of luxury brands, managers of ordinary brands who desire to develop them into luxury brands, and managers who are considering creating luxury brands in the UK. The findings should inform management decisions relating to product development, advertising, promotion and distribution of luxury products and services. Originality/value – The paper makes an original contribution to knowledge by reporting the findings of an empirical study of luxury from the UK consumers’ perspective. It has value to academic researchers who are interested in the concept of luxury as well as those involved in or considering luxury brand management.

This paper investigates the significance of value co-creation to the UK animal healthcare sector from the perspective of the key industry stakeholders: clients, veterinarians and paraprofessionals. Design Value co-creation constructs in the sector were identified and measured using a mixed methods approach comprised of qualitative NVivo© thematic analysis of depth interviews (n=13) and quantitative Exploratory Factor Analysis (n=271). Findings Qualitative results revealed nine underlying dimensions regarding service delivery in the sector: trustworthiness, communication, value for money, empathy, bespoke, integrated care, tangibles, accessibility and outcome driven service. Exploratory Factor Analysis of professional survey data loaded onto seven latent factors, with strong value co-creation dimensions identified. Research limitations/ implications The sampling process is sufficiently representative and diverse to present meaningful and valuable results; however, surveying should be extended to include the client group. Due to the originality of the research replication of the study will be beneficial to the broader understanding and application of value co-creation to the high-involvement services of animal healthcare. Practical implications Recognition of the importance of value co-creation to the sector should encourage professional stakeholders to develop and adopt integrated models of service provision and to provide improved levels of service quality. Originality and value The paper makes an original contribution to knowledge regarding value co-creation in respect of high involvement service provision. Its findings should be of value to academics interested in value co-creation in service sectors as well as animal healthcare practitioners seeking to offer better value and quality service provision.