Articles

Apr 2023

What is The Purpose And Value of a Family Office? A Global Overview

In today’s fast-paced world, wealthy individuals and business families face a myriad of challenges when it comes to managing their businesses, assets, finances, heritage and legacy.

Apr 2023

Fit for Generations: The Essentials of Successful Family Business Strategy

Family firms account for a majority of global companies, they provide 70% of the global GDP and 60% of global employment.

Apr 2023

Strategy And Succession in Family Business – Charting The Future

Family firms account for 70% of the global GDP and 60% of global employment according to a recent study by INSEAD Business School.

Jan 2022

Banyan Tree – Branded Paradise From Asia

From an early start in 1994, Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts has grown into one of Asia’s most successful hospitality brands with numerous international awards and accolades from publications like the prestigious Condé Nast Traveler and others.

Nov 2021

How Nations And Brands Overcome Country of Origin Challenges

In a globalised world with more competitors vying for shelf space across the globe, consumers are overloaded with informa­tion and continue to place increasing importance on brands.

Nov 2021

The Essential Features of a Global Asian Brand

With increasing globalization and flattening of the world, more Asian brands are venturing into newer markets and embracing customers in various cultures.

Nov 2021

The Secret of Zara’s Success: A Culture of Customer Co-creation

Zara is one of the world’s most successful fashion retail brands – if not the most successful one.

Oct 2021

Brand Naming Toolkit – Techniques And Insights

The central purpose of branding is to guide the consumer to choose your product a midst a dizzying array of alternatives.

Oct 2021

Korean Wave (Hallyu) – The Rise of Korea’s Cultural Economy & Pop Culture

The Korean Wave (Hallyu) refers to the global popularity of South Korea’s cultural economy exporting pop culture, entertainment, music, TV dramas and movies.

Feb 2021

The Secret to Starbucks’ Brand Success

The concept of the world being flat has extended beyond geographical boundaries to the rapid blurring and demolition of economic ones.

Feb 2021

Shang Xia – Chinese Luxury Fashion Brand With A French Soul

Shang Xia is a Chinese luxury fashion brand backed by Hermès offering high-quality products with a contemporary twist on traditional Chinese aesthetics and crafts.

Jan 2021

Singapore Airlines – An Excellent, Iconic Asian Brand

Think about one of the strongest brands from Asia, and chances are that Singapore Airlines (SIA) and its long-serving, almost iconic Singapore Girl easily come to mind.

Jan 2021

Uniqlo: The Strategy Behind The Global Japanese Fast Fashion Retail Brand

Mention the brand Uniqlo 10 years ago to anyone outside of Japan and you would get a confused look.

Dec 2020

Hermès – The Strategy Insights Behind The Iconic Luxury Brand

Hermès International, sometimes also referred to as Hermès of Paris or Hermes, is a French luxury goods manufacturer.

Nov 2020

Kering – Evolution of a Global Luxury Brand Company

Kering is one of the world’s largest luxury goods holding companies.

Nov 2020

Muji – The Global Strategy Behind The Japanese No-Brand Brand

In today’s marketplace full of brands screaming for attention, Muji represents the antithesis of consumerism.

Nov 2020

Giorgio Armani – The Iconic Global Fashion Brand

The Giorgio Armani brand owned and run by the founder designer Giorgio Armani has earned the much hallowed space in the fashion industry through its superior design, relevant themes and trends.

Nov 2020

Mandarin Oriental – An Iconic Asian Luxury Hotel Brand

Mandarin Oriental is an iconic global Asian luxury hotel brand competing on excellent service, high quality, unique Asian authenticity and prime hotel locations delivering exceptional customer experiences across touch points.

Nov 2020

Retail Branding In The New Digital Age

The traditional retail industry and associated business models have gone through a significant phase of disruption.

Oct 2020

Chinese Luxury Consumers – Trends and Challenges for Luxury Brands

According to a 2018 study by global management consultancy Bain & Company, the size of the global luxury market is USD 1.

Aug 2020

Identity Myths And Storytelling Are Keys To Building Iconic Brands

Many companies aspire to build brands that eventually get etched in the culture of the society and become cultural icons, but very few are able to achieve iconic status.

Nov 2019

Leadership In The 21st Century

The 21st century has been characterized by constant change and disruption.

Oct 2019

Shiseido – The Iconic Asian Cosmetics And Skincare Brand

Of the handful of Asian brands that usually make it to any global brand rankings, most like Sony, Canon, and so on originate from Japan.

Oct 2019

Strong Brands Are Business Drivers

The fast changing business landscape has made strong brands highly crucial to a company’s success.

Feb 2019

Brands, CEOs and Strategy

The relationship between brands and CEOs is precarious at best.

Feb 2019

Leadership and Branding – The Role of the CEO

In an analysis of the coming “Asian Century”, investment bank Goldman Sachs outlined the impending domination of China and India as economic and technological powerhouses in the global scene.

Jan 2019

Brands – Be True To The Asian Roots

Some Asian brands are becoming successful well beyond Asia.

Jan 2019

TWG Tea – The Asian Brand That Made Tea Drinking A Luxury

The TWG Tea brand strategy is built on the promise of providing a high-quality tea experience and education for the discerning global tea consumer.

Jan 2019

Air China – The Quintessential Chinese Brand

Air China aims to become a global Chinese airline brand dedicated to excellent operations, service levels and quality across the entire organization.

Dec 2018

Charles & Keith – A Truly Successful Asian Global Fast Fashion Retail Brand

Founded in Singapore in 1996, Charles & Keith is a fast-fashion retailer of high-quality, stylish footwear and accessories including bags, eyewear and costume jewellery catered to modern Asian women.

Dec 2018

Country Branding Strategies For Nations And Companies

The last two decades have seen cities, islands and even countries very aggressively branding themselves in order to create a resonating identity among stakeholders and build sustainable customer relationships that last a lifetime.

Dec 2018

10 Steps To Build A Successful Asian Brand

The orientation of brand management has gone through substantial changes over the last decades, and has evolved as a more integrated and visible part of the overall corporate strategy.

Jul 2018

Ralph Lauren – A Brand Capturing The American Spirit

Owned by its legendary founder, Ralph Lauren is an iconic American fashion brand built on an essential lifestyle promise.

Jun 2018

Strong Potential To Build Global South African Brands: Strategy And Road Map

South Africa for a long time has been in the global limelight for several reasons and in particular because the country is one of the leading economies in Africa.

May 2018

Next Frontier For Luxury Brands

Gone is the era in which the developed economies of Western Europe and North America ruled the global business landscape with their well-developed markets, massive middle class populations, considerable level of disposal income, well established institutional intermediaries and continually growing economies.

Apr 2018

The Chief Marketing Officer – A New Boardroom & Strategy Role

The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) has become one of the more commonly talked about corporate designations in recent years.

Mar 2018

Forever 21 – Fast Fashion Retail Brand With An Edge

Forever 21 became one of the largest and most competitive fast fashion retail brands in the world competing on cheap price points, merchandise, prime locations and rapid global logistics.

Feb 2018

Five Steps to Build a Strong Luxury Brand

One of the most pervasive domains in the last forty years that has captured the attention of CEOs, consultants, managers and academics is branding.

Feb 2018

Branding and Celebrity Endorsements

Nike is known around the world for being one of the most iconic brands.

Feb 2018

Huawei – Transforming A Chinese Technology Business To A Global Brand

Mention “Huawei” and most people would immediately associate the brand with the latest, high-quality technological products.

Jan 2018

Fiji Water – The Exotic Water Brand

There are few product categories where branding activities make such a dramatic impact on competitiveness and differentiation than in bottled water.

Jan 2018

Jim Thompson – The Asian Silk Brand

The Jim Thompson Thai Silk Company from Thailand is a well-known Asian brand with great potential to become a strong international lifestyle brand.

Dec 2017

AmorePacific – Korean Beauty Company Going Global

AmorePacific aims to become a global Korean beauty company with a brand portfolio competing on innovation, quality, marketing and authentic Korean cool.

Nov 2017

Samsung – The Global Asian Brand

Think of any high-end consumer durable like a camera, MP3 player, integrated mobile phone, plasma television, or even camcorders, and it is only natural that Samsung comes to mind.

Oct 2017

Alibaba – The Chinese Brand Leading Disruptive Innovation

The world had started noticing it some time back, but when a Chinese e-commerce company created the world’s biggest Initial Public Offering (IPO) valued at USD 25 billion in September 2014, it was really an event for everyone to take further notice.

Sep 2017

Customer-centric and Consumer-driven Brands

With the immense power bestowed upon consumers by the Internet and an ever expanding means of communication, consumption and interaction, companies have been forced to rethink their branding and business models.

Sep 2017

Unleashing The Asian Brand Potential

In the next 10 years, a rapid changing landscape will emerge in Asia where the opportunities for Asian companies to benefit from branding efforts will be larger than ever before.

Aug 2017

Branding Beyond The CEO – The Role of The Organization

All companies aspire to build brands that eventually get etched in the culture of the society and become cultural icons.

Aug 2017

Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts – Bringing Asian Hospitality To The World

The Shangri-La brand began in 1971 with its first hotel in Singapore.

May 2017

Next Generation Leadership: How To Enhance Performance

Next generation leadership is about leading in the most turbulent of times, and successful next generation leaders will be masters of change and resilience.

May 2017

Brand Building In India – Strategic Imperatives

India’s beauty and attractiveness lies in its complexity and diversity.

May 2017

Net-A-Porter – Revolutionizing Global Fashion Retail

The luxury online fashion retailer Net-A-Porter was launched in London by Natalie Massenet in June 2000.

Mar 2017

The Asian Beauty Industry – New Challenges and Opportunities

The rapid growth of the Asian beauty industry over the last few years has caught everyone’s attention.

Nov 2016

Chief Strategy Officer – Evolution of A New Corporate Role

The number of Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) appointments have been growing steadily over the years.

Oct 2016

Ten Ways to Become A Great Mentor

A great mentor is able to lead their mentee with empathy, sensitivity and patience, while constantly adapting to changing times and complex circumstances.

Oct 2016

5 Things Psychology Can Teach Marketing About Persuasion

Persuasion plays a role in everyone’s life, and for some people like marketers or politicians, it plays an even bigger part.

Oct 2016

Digital Branding – Implications On Strategy

Nike, Starbucks, Disney, McDonald’s, IKEA, Nokia, IBM, Coca-Cola and LEGO are some of the best known global brands around.

Sep 2016

BritishIndia – Reliving The British Colonial Era Through Fashion

Originally from Malaysia, BritishIndia has carved out a niche for itself in the lifestyle segment of the Asian fashion retail market over the last 18 years.

Jul 2016

Technology And Fashion – A Disruptive Combination

The Apple Watch was launched in April 2015 and ushered in a new era where fashion and technology began to move closer to each other.

Jun 2016

Brand Guardrails – How To Keep Successful Brands On Track

It is paramount that brands stand for something in today’s complex and ever-evolving local and global marketplaces.

Jun 2016

Hello Kitty – The Iconic Japanese Brand

Created by Sanrio Ltd, founded in 1960 by Shintaro Tsuji, Hello Kitty is one of the truly phenomenal brands to emerge from Japan.

Jun 2016

Aman – The Unbranded Asian Luxury Resort Brand

Amanresorts is one of the most iconic brands to have emerged from Asia.

Feb 2016

Rebranding – Best Practices For Success

The concept of rebranding is an often-misunderstood one.

May 2015

How To Create Strong Brand Positioning

Brand positioning is the process of creating a distinctive offering for a brand, which differentiates the brand in the hearts and minds of the consumer, enhances its appeal and positively impacts current and future purchase potential.

Apr 2015

Brand Architecture – Strategic Imperatives for M&A

In the recent past, organisations were using brand architecture to manage increasingly complex brand portfolios and implement business strategies that would allow them to manage their innovation pipelines.

Apr 2015

Brand Valuation: Evolution of a strategic practice

Brand valuation is a domain of branding that is marred by inconsistencies and controversies.

Apr 2015

CMO & CEO: Evolving Relationship In The New Age Of Marketing

The role of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) continues to evolve as the marketing function becomes more strategic but also equally complex and challenging.

Mar 2015

Managing Brand Equity – Best Global Practice Assessment

Even though there are several definitions of brand equity and multiple methods of measuring it, one thing is accepted as a fact by all marketers, it is very difficult to measure.

Mar 2015

Sony – The Battle To Stay Relevant

A highly relevant and discussed topic in the domain of branding is the importance of maintaining consistency for brands in marketplaces characterized by diverse cultures, increasingly empowered customers and ever changing trends and customer preferences.

Jan 2015

Brand Architecture: Key Drivers of Success

The importance of having a strategic vision and a clearly defined management process for brand architecture has increased significantly over the years.

Oct 2014

Boardroom Structure – Brand Consciousness And Diversity Are Key

No resource allocation is more important than the allocation of the most senior leaders responsible for shaping the identity and future of a brand.

Aug 2014

Leading Effectively Across Generations

Great leaders are defined by their ability to unite groups of unique individuals around a common vision.

Jul 2014

Transforming The View On Asian Consumer Psychology

Most consumer behaviour models used in boardrooms today were developed in Western countries and based on the perspective of the individual as an independent, autonomous identity, free to make decisions based on purely personal desires and affiliations, living life in accordance with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Jun 2014

Versatility Is The Key To Effective Leadership

In a world where everyone is unique, there is no one-size-fits-all leadership strategy.

May 2014

Branding By The Numbers – Measuring Brand Value, Equity And Marketing Activity

The primary objective of boardrooms is to build and sustain shareholder value over the long-term.

May 2014

Branding – The Strongest Value Driver for Asia

Branding drives shareholder value.

Apr 2014

Human Resource Strategies For A Brand-Driven Organisation

A brand is created out of thousands of experiences with products, services and systems created by people.

Apr 2014

Cross-Cultural Branding And Leadership

Globalization has had a tremendous impact on businesses in general.

Apr 2014

Crisis leadership: Toyota and General Motors brand lessons

Brands play an important role in modern society – a role which cannot be denied in scope and scale.

Apr 2014

Brand Community – Creating Differentiation Through Consumption

Marketing thought has strongly advocated differentiation of products and services as a means of achieving competitive advantage.

Mar 2014

Branding And Culture – The Strategic Winning Combination

One of the biggest implications of globalization for companies seeking to expand to foreign shores is the task of balancing standardization with customization.

Mar 2014

Market Orientation – The essential foundation for strong brands

Apple Computers, Starbucks Coffee, Virgin Group, L’Oreal, Louis Vuitton, Nike, Singapore Airlines, Banyan Tree and Samsung are among some of the most successful brands in the world.

Mar 2014

What Is Rebranding? It Is Probably Not What You Think It Is

Commoditization and replication have always been a fact of competitive markets.

Mar 2014

Brand globalization – Strategy pitfalls to avoid

Global companies face a constant need to grow.

Mar 2014

Challenges That Undermine Rebranding Efforts

Many potential challenges exist when a company tries to reinvent itself.

Mar 2014

How Boardrooms Must React To A World Of Devices, Data & Social Media

So much of a brand’s future success now depends on how they manage the mobile, social and digital revolution.

Mar 2014

Why Innovate? The Modern Brand & Business Imperative

Opportunity and fear must motivate leaders to pursue innovation as the ultimate differentiator.

Mar 2014

New Strategies For A Changing Global Landscape

In the last ten to fifteen years, a new paradigm of global business has emerged.

Mar 2014

Who Should Innovate?

Organisations of all sizes, in all industries, in all parts of the world must innovate to achieve sustained competitive advantage.

Mar 2014

Asian Brand Strategy: A New Paradigm For Boardrooms

The face of business in Asia is changing faster than one can blink one’s eyes.

Feb 2014

The Role of M&A in Brand Building

For the modern brand, sustainable competitive advantage can not be built upon logo design, taglines, packaging or marketing campaigns.

Feb 2014

Reasons why most mergers destroy shareholder value

Mergers and acquisitions can be valuable for a brand for many reasons: improving existing products or services, change of personality or direction, a gateway to foreign markets, and acquiring talented people or intellectual property.

Feb 2014

How To Manage Brand Failures Effectively

A brand is the identity of a company, product, service in the minds of consumers that is built through hundreds of experiences and interactions, reinforced by word of mouth references of others.

Feb 2014

Strong Profitable Brands And Emerging Markets

One of the biggest challenges for Asian companies apart from the prevailing trading mindset is the “Made In” tag in order for them to build and sustain strong brands.

Feb 2014

Strong Brands Are Led By The CEO

It is quite clear that this is going to be Asia’s century.

Feb 2014

Apple Without Jobs – Future of A Global, Iconic Brand

What makes companies successful? How can companies achieve success that can be sustained across markets, customer segments and in the face of increasing competition? But most importantly, how can companies strategically leverage its resources, skills and competencies to effectively create a competitive advantage that can be sustained over long periods of time? These questions are.

Feb 2014

Brands as Value Drivers

Branding enhances shareholder value, it can become a catalyst for better leadership, it enables to drive a shared vision throughout the organization, and it can help to balance short- and long-term perspectives and performance.

Jan 2013

When To Kill A Brand

Brands are strategic assets of companies.