has become the most important scientific conference worldwide on the topic of brands. 193 people from 23 countries covering all 5 continents took part in the two-and-a-half-day conference, with around 80 double-blind reviewed papers overseen by 78 reviewers (acceptance rate: 72%), being presented and discussed. As local organisers, we wanted to take the conference further and take on a 'fresh' approach. Renewal and innovation relate to three areas in particular: (1) fresh topics, (2) fresh methods, (3) fresh practice-science-exchange.