Nostalgia and brands: a sweet rather than a bitter cultural evocation of the past

Abstract

Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rjmm20 Nostalgia and brands: a sweet rather than a bitter cultural evocation of the past Aurélie Kessous To cite this article: Aurélie Kessous (2015) Nostalgia and brands: a sweet rather than a bitter cultural evocation Abstract This study focuses on the cultural consumer environment of brands considered as nostalgic. The research questions are thus the following: what is the impact of culture on the consumer relationship with brands considered as nostalgic? In which cases are these relationships positive, and in which cases are they negative? To answer these questions, a longitudinal data collection was conducted, consisting of interviewing the same sample of respondents three times, at more or less one-year intervals. The results were analysed taking into account three dimensions of culture: time, place and social aspects. In the time-based approach, brands are associated with traditional celebrations and rites of passage. Thus, they give rise to 'traditional purchase' and consumer loyalty. In the place-based approach, brands evoke original authenticity and myths. They offer protection to reduce perceived risks and therefore facilitate consumers' trust. In the social approach, brands are associated with symbolic icons and attract communities of fans. Finally, this article shows that culture involves sweeter rather than bitter nostalgic brand relationships. This article brings to light four cases when the consumer cultural environment may induce a rejection of the nostalgic brand: (1) the 'corrupted' brand; (2) the 'immoral' brand; (3) the 'precarious' brand; and (4) the 'stereotypical' brand. It shows that only one case -the 'corrupted' brand -may be particularly prejudicial due to its unwelcome role in History.

From nostalgia for the recent past and beyond: The temporal frames of recalled consumption experiences

“…These include strong social bonds, meaningful others and momentous life events (Sedikides et al, ), the feelings of success or excitement of trying out new things, new consumer goods or starting a new hobby (Holbrook & Schindler, ) and various products from jewellery to cars (Baker & Kennedy, ; Havlena & Holak, ), food products and eating practices (Autio, Collins, Wahlen, & Anttila, ; Dalli & Romani, ; Kauppinen‐Räisänen, Gummerus, & Lehtola, ; Kessous & Roux, ; Vignolles & Pichon, ; Zarantonello & Luomala, ) as well as packaging (Ryynänen, Joutsela, & Heinonen, ; Underwood, ). Nostalgic meanings seldom rise only from the object itself, but are connected with an individual's experiences with the object, with familiar people and at defined physical places (Hirsch, ; Holak & Havlena, ; Holbrook, ; Holbrook & Schindler, ; Kessous, ; Kessous & Roux, ; Ryynänen et al, ; Schindler & Holbrook, ).…”

Ontological security as an unconscious motive of social media users

“…The primary motives involved are rediscovering former versions of the self, and reintegrating these lost selves into a personal narrative that leads up to the present self (Boym, 2001). As depicted in Figure 1, verification and validation of the self is a fundamental motivation for these kinds of nostalgic experiences (Kessous, 2015). Nostalgia is "one of the ways that one develops and maintains identity" and is "the primary means by which one maintains relationships with old parts of the self and by which one measures personal change over time" (Cavanaugh, 1989, p. 63).…”

The Relationship between Nostalgic Emotion and Purchase Intention: Brand Awareness and Brand Attitude as Moderating Variables

“…Among the strengths and strategic actions of various industries, nostalgic emotion has become an important product strategy for many heritage brands in the hope of converting the emotional memories of consumers into purchasing power in order to withstand the threat of new or international brands. In this area, food brands have the most potential (Kessous, 2015;Tirelli & Martínez-Ruiz, 2014). The food products are a product type that is likely to generate purchase intention (Yeh & Huan, 2017).…”