Regionalism

Depending on your field of study or career, when one mentions Regionalism one may think of different fields. One may think of regional economy, other political regionalism theory, and others may consider regionalism cultural studies.

In Douglas Reichert Powell's book Critical Regionalism: Connecting Politics and Culture in the American Landscape (2007), he traces the trajectory of the term critical regionalism from its original use in architectural theory to its inclusion in literary, cultural, and political studies and proposes a methodology based on the intersection of those fields.

In fact, my first encounter with Critical Regionalism was in Architecture itself. My first field of study was Architecture and Space, and my first contact with regionalism was by the teaching of Kenneth Frampton, by my Theory professor José António Bandeirinha, and Portuguese architectural masters such as Fernando Távora and Álvaro Siza Vieira.

My second field of study and practice was Branding, with the teachings of João Campos, Wally Olins and Simon Sinek. Working with mostly regional and small brands but also some global brands too, I always ponder if the best brand strategy isn’t a regional one, one that acknowledge the uniqueness and special characters of a region, its culture and citizens, and one that ties them all together in order to strengthen the bond between the brand, the locals, and the consumers, in order to develop strong brand loyalists and advocates, and build a sense of purpose, unity and belonging.

Regionalism won't be here mention from an economical nor a political perspective but rather as a summary from my career so far, and the reason why I am an advocate of Regionalism and its future of Architecture, of Branding, and of Architectural Branding (in close association with Branded Environment, Territorial Branding and Retail Tourism).

The article follows the following order:

• Regionalism in Architecture

• Regionalism in Destination and Territorial Branding

• Regionalism in relationship with Brands

• Retail Tourism and Brand Spaces

• Regionalism Branding

Regionalism in Architecture

Regionalism was my Master’s thesis theme, though I didn’t know it back then. I always loved to travel and experience different cultures. Always disliked when, on those travels, I saw the same architecture, the same buildings, the same clothes, the same brands, the same cities.

I entered on a journey to figure out how and when the homogenization of world culture and architecture started. Turns out, in very few words, it can be traced to the XIX century European imperialism, and the western’ Modern and Modernity. Modernity has been first and foremost a project, a project of progress, of innovation, a notion of economical and sociological superiority. Backed by the cultural and artistic Modernism movement, if you wanted to transmit the image of sophistication, innovation, progress, economical and sociological superiority, you better invest in some modern architecture - glass, concrete and iron skyscrapers (this in a globalized capitalist and western-centric world).

“Architecture cannot be limited by physical space, and identity of place cannot be contained by an independent building.”. - Martin Heidegger (2002), Identity and Difference

In my thesis I seek out to answer the homogenization question of how and when, only recently I started to work on how to answer the question: How to fix it? And the answer is Regionalism.

But what is Regionalism and Critical Regionalism exactly when one talks about it in Architecture?

The key idea behind Critical Regionalism is resistance to the standardization of architecture that globalization brings. It isn’t necessarily an economical refusal of globalization, nor of global itself, but of its cultural and artistic homogenization.

It is derived mainly through a cultural and artistic response to local climate, context, materials and topography. It is traditional and often rooted in years of vernacular practice. It is an outcome of the specifics of that region, its climate, materials and skills, culture, lifestyle, and technology available in a particular area. It creates local authenticity and a sense of belonging that we humans, psychological and mentally starve for.

From left to right: Masdar City, Abu Dhabi by Foster+Partners, Atlantic Pools, Madeira island by Pulo David

Standardized, generic architecture creates a sense of placelessness where buildings look and feel the same, regardless of its location. Critical regionalism aims at finding a middle ground between the advantages of contemporary technological advancements and aesthetics, and being true to local contexts.

It is more of a philosophy, a way of looking at architecture, which varies specifically from project to project and region to region, rather than a style defined by specific design features and norms. It emphasizes design that suits the local context, but it doesn’t deny the global all entirely: instead of simply transposing global elements and superimposing them on any landscape, critical regionalism promotes the global influence with regional elements to enhance the experience of a space, and provides a genuine experience to its inhabitants. Afterall, architecture and space aren’t neutral, they can be highly discriminatory and create relationships.

But why is regionalism in design so relevant today?

In a time of constant evolution and change, preserving a sense of place, identity and authenticity has surfaced as exceedingly valuable, for the local residents and for tourists.

Architecture, buildings and urban spaces are, essentially, cultural and social products. If we see the city or a destination through the eyes of a tourist, very rarely an individual travels km to see and feel the same he sees and feels at home, rather he is looking for an authentic and unique experience that differentiates from his quotidian.

Not only do the local residents want to have that harmony, authenticity and feel of belonging with a place - to feel recognized -, the tourists also want to see and participate in that kind of cultural and social experience.

Regionalism architecture and authentic cities/destinations can also be one of the basis for the touristic success of a destination, and therefore influence positively its economy and society, as we will see in the next chapter.

Regionalism in Destination and Territorial Branding

Architecture plays a prominent role not only in developing tourism but also helps in understanding different places of history, culture, and lifestyle. Most of the visible aspects in cultural landscape is architecture of the place (Hudman & Jackson, 2002) which means that how people perceive a destination and visually experience it depends largely on how appealing its architecture and how well planned the urban space are.

Enquire anyone in the world what comes to mind when one mentions Dubai and they will most probably mention the Burj Khalifa, New York City and they will mention the Empire State Building, London and they will mention the Big Ben and the Palace of Westminster - what people immediately picture when asked about a particular destination are its architectural scenes. Architecture and tourism are thus closely interconnected, and architecture plays an important role in differentiating a destination and developing its brand image.

Neverbefore had tourists from diverse social and financial classes had so many opportunities to travel and so many destinations to choose from. They travel for the most diverse reasons: business & professional, leisure & wellbeing, shopping & adventure, just to mention a few. Whatever may be the reason for traveling, tourism is increasingly becoming a source of revenue, with strong impacts for national GDP and employment generators. More and more countries and cities, realizing the increasing potential in the tourism industry, are investing in developing a strong and desirable Destination.

But with so many destinations worldwide, and with the increasing network of transportation routes at very affordable prices, how can a destination distinguish itself from others?

Obviously an answer for such a complex question isn’t simple. Afterall there are so many shareholders and factors that influences a destination: such as local culture, local arts, locals itself and their personality, business and finances, food and gastronomy, restaurants and hotels, airport and transportation infrastructure (such as metro, taxi, uber, etc), local history, architecture, pollution, nature, climate, safety, politics, religion, etc.

Destination branding can also happen in different sectors, generally speaking: financial and economical perspective - a destination good for business but not focus on leisure -, lifestyle, culture, sports and shopping - a destination that is focus on leisure activities and offerings -, nature, wellbeing, and spirituality - a destination to reconnect with nature or God.

Although in the sphere of branding, one can work with the destination and its sectors and shareholders in order to achieve the desired brand image, the main point of this article is a reflection on how Regionalism can achieve a positive impact in terms of leisure and reconnecting tourism.

So how can a destination distinguish itself from the rest and build a strong Destination Branding, with Regionalisms in mind, that will have positive impacts in the leisure and reconnecting tourism industry?

It has already mentioned some shareholders and factors that may influence the destination brand image and perspective in the tourist eyes. Architecture, as mentioned, has a strong visual impact on the general brand image. Culture and lifestyle are also of obvious importance, but one key factor that unites it all is authenticity: How authentic it all is? Does it feel right or fake? Does the architecture match with the local culture and lifestyle? How do the locals interact with the presented brand? Is it authentic or is it fabricated to attract tourists?

Authenticity is an emotive and personal word. Ask a group of intellectuals to reflect on it and the argument will last for days.

In 1990 Peter Blundell Jones, a British Architect, hosted a series of lectures at the South Bank Polytechnic with the title ‘In Search of Authenticity’ in order to try and answer the disconnection that city and humans have been developing, and found that authenticity was the connecting element that was missing.

Industries, governments and shareholders were all focused on developing cities and destinations for the globalized and capitalist post-modern western society with glass, concrete and iron as their front calvary and dismissed and ignored the local lifestyle, culture and architecture. Cities were focused on transmitting a standard capitalist image and authenticity simply can’t survive in that global standardization.

Between the speakers were the most famous and celebrated architects and anthropologists at the time: Peter Smithson declared authenticity a biological necessity. Giancarlo De Carlo found it in the genius loci and cultural history, Colin St John Wilson in the connection between aesthetics and ethics. Peter Ahrends, although one of the most socially committed, had grave doubts about whether it can be attained, and if everything isn’t a copy or a fabrication of something else.

All valid points, and all interrelated with Regionalism. Everyone found that Authenticity was of extreme importance in order for humans to reconnect with a place - biologically, psychologically, mentally, sociologically, and artistically. Regionalism, when done right, is one of the few elements that can’t be copied without losing its authenticity - and that is why it is so important in the tourism industry and in destination branding - due to its uniqueness and differentiator factor.

Therefore, it is important for destinations to identify their uniqueness, work their authenticity and develop a cultural and architectural regionalism strategy. All are key factors for tourists’ travel decision making, and also, perhaps more important, help the local residents to reconnect with the place emotionally, mentally and physically.

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Following the De Carlo argument of ‘Genius Loci’, in contemporary usage, ‘Genius Loci’ usually refers to a location's distinctive atmosphere or a "spirit of the place". Its uniqueness and authenticity, what makes a destination special in summary. This unique “spirit” can be transmitted with the help of Regionalism practices such as: its cultural, artistic and religious traditions and history, vernacular and traditional architecture, historical monuments and architecture, local food, kitchen and gastronomy, regional fashion and lifestyle.

This doesn’t necessarily mean to be ‘stuck’ in the past. Innovation of such practices should always be encouraged but without losing its roots, archives and context. If we think about the most successful destinations globally one can discuss Rome, London, Japan, or Bali - all with very strong ties to regional culture and architecture that help the local authorities to develop a strong, respectful, and very lucrative destination branding, that not only impacted positively the country brand image but also of its business to the outside world.

Bali, for example, not only keeps the cultural identity and religion intact and present in the quotidian of its citizens, it is one of the main attractions for tourists. When in Ubud, one can see the diverse arts being practiced by locals at their doors and studios, and diversified by neighborhoods, religion ceremonies and cultural parties.

Balinese artisans

Not only that, local brands have successfully captured the essence of Bali and translated it into products and business that have gained global success due the strong regionalistic culture and destination brand image that attracts thousands each year to the island and makes them want to support local business - capturing a little of that Bali essence with them each time they buy from such brands.

Balinese brands capturing the essence of Bali in their brands. From left to right: Biasa, Waktu Mikha, Bali Buda

Its regional architecture is well admired worldwide and the tourism industry, recognizing the power of authenticity, implements it in its hotel, restaurants and stores, in order to create the harmonious scenery that Bali is known for.

Balinese architecture captured into the hospitality industry. Bulgari Hotel & Resort in Petjatu, Bali

All together, the regionalistics cultural strategies that government, citizens and business have developed helped to consolidate the destination brand that Bali is so enormously known for and not only increases Bali tourism’s desirability but positively impacts its local brands at a local and a global scale.

In summary, Destination and Territorial Branding aims to enhance the region's reputation, attract investment, boost tourism, stimulate economic growth, and foster a sense of place and identity among its residents. It can also serve as a powerful tool for differentiating the region in a competitive global landscape. Successful destination brands can lead to increased economic opportunities and a stronger sense of pride and community.

Regionalism in relationship with Brands

Before entering into Brand Regionalism, I believe it is of extreme importance to discuss what is a Brand and what elements built a strong brand.

What is a Brand?

Putting it simply, a Brand is what your customers think of when they hear your brand name, it is how your business is perceived by those who experience it. It is a promise, a perception, an association. It goes beyond just the physical and visual elements and includes its intangible aspects such as its values, its personality, and the emotional connections that consumers associate with it. In some cases it is even very personal and emotional, and that is why it is so hard to define and perhaps the reason why there are so many definitions and confusion of it out there.

Studies have actually shown that humans relate and in some instances develop relationship and emotional bonds with brands more or less the same way we relate with other humans. So, it is only logical to think of a brand as a living, emotional, intellectual and evolving being.

Let’s imagine a Brand like a person. We have our experts, our popular and influentials, our intellectuals and thinkers, our adventurous and adrenaline junkies, our party animals; some people are friendly and emotional, others more distant and rational, some mature and others more childish, some are more private and introvert, other more outspoken and extrovert. I am referring to people of course, but the same adjective and personalities can be attributed to brands. Brand managers and marketers do it so it’s easier for customers to relate and associate themselves with brands. The elements a person needs to go through to be seen as an expert, for example, are more or less the same as a brand needs to.

What does a person need to do in order to have a reputation as an intellectual expert? Regardless of the field.

One probably will need to provide concrete hard and solid evidences and data that prove its theories, have a degree or two, probably write at least one book, give interviews and appear in intellectual shows related to the subject(s), earn oneself some earned media, be recognized by other experts in the industry, give a seminar or two, teach it in a school or college, he would to have the body language, the proper vocabulary and tone of voice that transmit conviction, and, lastly but not least, have the industry’s look, the visual and physical aesthetic of that particular industry that transmit confidence and trust. Just imagine a psychologist dressed as a pop-star. It won't gain most respect nor attract the desired audience. Pop-star’s image are meant to convey the idea of an entertainer, with most probably very fashionable and sexy outfits. Psychologists, on the other hand, need to have a more serious and constant image in order to translate the seriousness of the field and of themselves.

Well brands are more or less the same. In order to transmit the desired image, your brand needs to act as a person, in every aspect and element. It needs the right looks, the right message and communication, the right platforms, and the right recognition in their respective fields.

What builds a strong Brand?

According to Wally Olins - the world’s most famous branding specialist -, a strong brand is constructed by the following 5 elements:

1. the Product and Services - everything sold and promoted (not only the physical and digital product/service itself but the emotional, mental and logical aspect behind it), and every interaction between it and the consumer (for example experience marketing)

2. the Brand Environments - and in here its included the Digital (social media, website, VR and MR experiences) and Physical spaces (physical stores, pop-up shops, wholesale spaces, brand activations and experience marketing)

3. the Communication - every communication and interaction between the brand and the customer, its tone of voice, social media and website content, marketing and advertising campaigns, employee-consumer interactions; in general its paid, owned and shared media + employee-customer communication and interactions.

4. the Behaviors - every interaction that employees have with consumers, customer service quality and expectation, the sale and interaction tactics, experience marketing techniques

5. the Central Idea - the brand’s purpose and essence, it's Why, the reason for existence and the glue that keeps everything together and in place

A brand’s Central Idea is its most important factor and differentiator element. Everything else should be developed from this premise : its products/services, its environments, its communication and behaviors should be grown from that Central Idea.

For example, Patagonia is a well-known outdoor clothing and gear company that has its Central Idea around environmental responsibility and sustainability. They are committed to the creation of high-quality products while minimizing their environmental impact. This purpose is visible in everything they do, from their product design and sourcing to their campaigns and advocacy for environmental causes.

Nike's "Just Do It" campaign is an example of a brand that effectively communicates its purpose of empowering athletes and individuals to strive for excellence. They promote a message of determination, ambition, and achievement in their marketing, and strive to develop innovative products that would help its customers to achieve it, aligning with their Central Idea.

Tesla has a clear brand purpose related to sustainability and reducing the carbon footprint of transportation. Their mission is to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy, and this purpose is evident in their electric vehicle offerings and renewable energy products, such as solar panels and increasing the network of charging stations around the US and the world.

These brands have successfully integrated their Central Idea and Brand Purpose into their overall identity, managing to establish the desired brand images in customer’s heads and hearts. From their products and marketing to their corporate practices and community involvement, they have demonstrated that a strong commitment to a purpose beyond profit can resonate with consumers and contribute to increase the brand loyalty levels.

All the other elements should be strongly interconnected with each other and centralized around their Brand Purpose, to the point where one can’t see where one ends and the other one begins.

For example behavior and communication are extremely difficult to separate both concepts; specially when every form of communication is a form of behavior itself and every behavior communicates something.

Brand Spaces and brand visual aspects of graphic design also communicate something visually and spatially, even without the use of words. For example the space on the left is saying that it is an elegant, luxurious and sophisticated brand (experience and lifestyle oriented), while the space on the right is saying that it is a practical and cost-oriented brand.

From left to right: Ralph Lauren store in Chicago, Zara store in Hong Kong

Despite having invested in creative, minimalistics and somehow artistic stores and vitrines in the last couple of years, Zara’s entire visual merchandising, excess display of pieces (that encourage the consumer to find its size by himself), and small ‘cheap’ visual elements such as hangers, demonstrate the cost-oriented character of the brand.

When one enters the store on the left it expects a certain level of high-end service with attention to detail, personalized service and special care that comes with the non-verbal space communication of a luxury brand, reinforced by the quality, style, design and price of its products.

If, on the contrary, it enters such store and it receives the treatment of the store on the right by the brand’s employees, not only the experience doesn’t deliver on its promise, its stains it negatively and one can only assume the following:

• the brand didn’t deliver the proper training to the employee,

• the brand needs to rethink its hiring procedures,

• the brand is overworking and underpaying such employee to the point of negligence,

• the brand doesn’t care about the customer experience and is only focused on selling the product with no extra thought on developing customers relationship nor brand loyalty, thus isn’t expecting the customer to come back nor repeat the experience,

• the brand isn’t quite as luxurious as its brand space and product tend to communicate

In all cases we can see how this is a problem of incarnating the Central Idea. For example, in the Ralph Lauren case, its Brand Purpose is “to inspire the dream of a better life through authenticity and timeless style”, if it manages to inspire it throw its products, its environments, and its verbal and graphic communication but if the behavior, customer service and employee communication are missing, it doesn’t quite form the desired brand image on consumers’ head of a luxurious brand, because the experience in store wasn’t the one expected nor promised by its products, environments and non-behavioral communications.

On the other hand, the same customer can’t enter a store like Zara and expect a high-end service. It simply doesn’t match with Zara’s brand Purpose nor Central Idea, its brand Space, nor the products’ quality and price. The employees’ behaviors match with every single non-verbal brand communication.

In another scenario, if we exchange the products from Zara and display them in the Ralph Lauren store and vice-versa, it would confuse the consumer: once again the experience doesn’t match with the product, the brand space, nor the Brand’ Central Idea.

The Brand’s Purpose needs to be consistent in every aspect and every element in order to have a strong and consistent brand, and to construct the desired brand image in the consumers’ heads and hearts.

It is well known that we humans have 2 ways of communication:

• the verbal one counts for 45% (with words counting for 7% and tone of voice 38%),

• and the body language counts for 55%.

This means that the visual presentation is the most important way that humans have to communicate, followed by the tone of voice, and lastly the words themselves.

The same concept can be given to brands with the brand spaces and environments, the graphic elements of its brand identity, the employees behaviors and body language, and the products/services design and display itself counting for 55% of the non-verbal communication that impacts consumers’ brand image, 38% with the tone of voice used in communications, and merely 7% to what is actually said influences customers perspective positively or negatively.

Retail Tourism and Brand Spaces

Regionalism in Brand Spaces doesn’t necessarily influence retail tourism - meaning people usually don't select a destination merely to see a particular physical brand space. Retail tourism shoppers choose a destination for shopping having in mind particular brands and prices (among other factors). But regionalism brand spaces can impact tourists that are already in a destination and find themselves attracted by the local culture/lifestyle and encourage them to shop. It can even impact locals that feel appreciated and emotionally attached to the brand, and want to support it economically, and perhaps even become brand advocates.

Branding regionalism is a smart strategy for global brands to enter new markets. The term Glocal or Glocalization isn’t new, but it usually refers to products and communication. Brands can also use such strategies in their brand spaces consolidating all the aspects in order to build a strong brand image.

Either being pop-up shops, physical or digital shops, department and retailer spaces, brands can take advantage of the Critical Regionalism theory in architecture and Regionalism Branding/Glocalization strategies in order to gain trust and create emotional bonds with consumers in different geographical regions. In an era where consumers desire meaningful connections, Regionalism in retail design emerges as a powerful design strategy.

Aesop, for example, is the embodiment of how powerful regional brand space is when done right and used as a marketing device. With over 300 retail spaces worldwide, not two are the same. Their in-house design department collaborates with local studios in order to design their spaces and reflect not only the Aesop brand but the ‘Genius Locci’ of a location, drawing on history and their unique characteristics. The only constant are their products and labels.

From left to right: Aesop store in Houston, USA, and in Salzburg, Austria

In Aesop Houston Galleria, USA (in the left) the retail space pays homage to the city and its golden era of space race of the 60’s with a futuristic optimism design, a single warm color and round edges. Its store in Salzburg, Austria (in the right) has oak paneling and a basin crafted from nagelfluh stone, paying homage to its Alpine setting.

Aesop’s approach to its brand spaces and retail design is unique and respectful of community, culture and history. There is a sense of calm with its minimalistic philosophy, and an incredible attention to detail that is consistent across locations that highlights Aesop’s product range.

Starbuck has a similar retail design approach. Starbucks have been developing a brand space regionalistic strategy, tailoring brand spaces to reflect local culture and context. The brand space's current mission is to create “a spectacular Starbucks café experience that is steeped in the local culture and designed to reflect the unique characteristics of each neighborhood”.

Starbucks in Al Seef Dubai, UAE, for example, is designed to represent the picturesque charm of the old and vernacular village and it attracts hundreds of curious customers and tourists to the store just for the vernacular experience in a glass and iron, globalized and modern city. The store is one of Starbucks' many efforts at regionalizing its international spaces to create authentic connections with local residents and consumers.

This approach can also be seen in their Kyoto stores, where traditional Japanese design elements such as wooden screens and paper lanterns have been incorporated with brand elements, creating a harmonious mix of modernity and tradition.

Starbucks stores in Kyoto, Japan

These unique and authentic brand spaces create a sense of harmony and belonging, making the transaction of a merely coffee shop global chain to a community hub, establishing a genuine connection with the local customer and transmitting a unique experience to tourists.

Brands understood that people are longing for something different from the global standardization and Regionalism is the next logical step. In today's digitally globalized world, where brands can reach consumers across borders, the consumers expect that brands develop products and experiences that cater to their unique desires and needs. They expect that brands recognize their uniqueness and show that they care, and regionalism in brand spaces encourages brands to craft shopping experiences and activities that are deeply connected with local communities. By seamlessly integrating local elements, cultural references, and historical context, brand spaces can develop a sense of belonging, encouraging customer engagement and loyalty, and influence their purchasing decisions.

As competition increases and consumer expectations become more demanding, recent studies have shown that 71% of consumers expect companies to deliver personalized interactions, and those brands that excel in develop this personalization could witness a 40% increase in revenue.

Nike store in NYC SoHo

But Regionalism goes beyond physical design. It is imperative in designing and offering experience that the local community could interact and participate with the brand, as for example the New York’s SoHo store. In this store Nike is inspired by the city’s street basketball culture and not only the retail space is influenced by local references, the store provides a basketball court for the local community, strengthening the sense of belonging and ownership in the neighborhood.

The power of regionalized retail design extends beyond standing out from the competition - it creates a sense of authenticity. In a globalized and standard world, regionalism stands as a vital strategy for building trust, fostering belonging, and building a long-lasting relationship between the brand and the locals.

Regionalism Branding

The term Glocal isn’t new, and the slogan ‘Think Global, Act Local” was been used so many times that we have become sick of it. In fact, such concepts have been around since the 80s. But, despite our boredom with such vocabulary, it may be stronger today than it was ever before.

We encounter a resistance against globalization and its cultural standardization in every aspect of our current society, in several (if not all) geographical regions. One of the tools brands have to better integrate themselves into these uncertain waters, is to have a Regional Brand strategy. Glocal is more a business strategy concept, while regional branding has the brand in mind.

Regional branding refers to the practice of creating a distinct and recognizable brand identity and a brand strategy for a specific geographic region, such as a city, state, province, or country. It involves leveraging the unique characteristics, culture, history, and assets of that region to establish a positive and compelling image in the minds of residents, visitors, investors, and potential customers.

There are two types of regionalism brand strategies:

1. Global brands that want to enter new regional market - for outside in - where they can adopt a regional brand strategy in order to enter such markets, adapting itself (without changing the brad core, purpose and essence) to local and unique characteristics;

2. And brands associated with a particular territorial brand that want to expand - from in to the outside. When one mentions Jacquemus, the public instantly thinks of France, Donna Karan - New York, and Burberry - UK. This occurs because such brands made significant efforts in their products, designs, communications and marketing, so their brand has an association with the territorial brand of such regions. In many cases, they have the same brand values that allows them to manipulate such links.

In both cases, Glocal strategies are advised, and in here I mean that alterations or adaptations may be required in the products and services provided and offered, in the communication and behaviors, marketing and advertising efforts.

The biggest challenges are:

1. How to make the right adaptation that would be well accepted by the desired regional consumer?

2. How to maintain the Brand’s core, essence and purpose?

If the first can be attained by conducting market research and consulting regional agencies, the second requires a strong internal audit and a robust brand - you need to be sure WHY your brand exists in the first place and it does what it does, and it should be very clear to every employee. Only after you will be able to communicate with consultants that will help you enter their market.

In order to do it right, brands need to leverage local people and culture, customize communications and marketing, and adopt global and modern technologies. Thus, market research is essential to understand such nuances, cultural and social norms.

For example, Walmart had difficulty when they first opened stores in Germany because they brought from the USA the custom of having employees greeting customers at the entrance. German consumers found this warm customer service intimidating and off-putting, and so very resistant to such warm interaction, avoided entering such stores. Walmart, after careful consumer behavior analysis, decided to change this signature practice to suit its German customers’ customs or risked losing all their investment. Walmart should have made such studies before entering the new market, afterall, expecting the German consumer to have the same social behavior, needs and desires as the American one is somehow extremely naive.

Such was the example of MTV. MTV had a tremendous success when it started in the USA, but once it broadcasted in the UK, India, China and South Korea, it didn't have the same level of success. They realized that, surprise surprise, different geographies had different musical tastes and that the music enjoyed by Americans didn’t perform so well overseas, and so they adapted the music broadcasted to local and regional preferences, and got better ratings after. They also used local language, adapted some elements of the brand identity and marketing to local culture, and hired local employees. This helped local communities to see the brand as part of the region and of their culture.

Other brands nailed it when it comes to adapting to new markets and regions. For example McDonalds. Whenever you are in the world you will find that McDonald menus vary and adapt to local culture, traditions and palates. In Arab countries you will find kebabs style burgers, wraps and vegetarian options, in India you will find a McAloo tikki but no beef options, while in Europe it is normal to have a beer with a McBurger. They simply tailor their product to the diverse geographical segments of the global market. McDonald’s recognizes how food is a part of people’s culture and the need to adapt to the local palate, not the other way around.

Kitkat is also another great example. It also considers the flavor preferences of the regional markets. While in the west the consumer prefers flavors like chocolate, strawberry and peanut butter, in Japan the consumer has a different palate and prefers flavors such as wasabi, green tea and matcha.

Adapting products to regional specifications of different places is one of the easiest ways to adapt business through different geographies, however, there are many ways to adapt to local preferences. Whether it’s adjusting your communication to appeal to your intended audience, or investing in a different color scheme, the challenge is to find the balance between your brand and the region. In some cases brands can’t simply share the same brand identity across the globe and expect to achieve the same results with so many different views (as already explained in the Brand Space segment).

Afterall, regionalism branding isn’t only about adapting their products and services to locals personal tastes and preferences, a brand must consider every aspect of the brand-building process and adapt each of the following elements to please local consumers. Although it isn’t advice to change every aspect of a brand identity just to fit new markets, it is important to have the following into consideration:

• Logo and Colors - colors and forms are perceived differently around the globe: red, for example, represents danger, love and passion in the West, and happiness, joy and celebration in China; purple represents wealth in the West but death in Latin America.

• Brand Name - such as colors and forms, some names have different connections in different geographies: for example Coca-Cola Light (most countries) and Diet Coke (USA) - as the company describes on their website, it decided to make the nominal change when it realized that "in certain countries, the term 'diet' is not used to describe low-calorie foods and beverages." Obviously there isn’t the necessity to change the name to every brand or product, such instances are pontual and very few and need to be studied and taken into consideration before entering new markets.

• Marketing and Communication - and here it is imperative to collaborate with local agencies and creators. Coca-cola once launched in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but weren’t aware that the Arabs read not only texts but also images from right to left. In the billboard you could see on the left a physically tired man and on the right the same man happy and energetic drinking a coke. From the left-right readers’ perspective, the man got happy and energetic after drinking a coke, but for Arabic right-left readers, the man was happy before and got tired after drinking the coke. Cultural references like this one are extremely important in order to transmit the right message. Apple is a brand that simply does it right. The campaign “I’m a Mac, I’m a PC” had great impact in the west, highlighting the defects that consumers face when using a PC and how Apple is a more productive and efficient alternative; but such a direct attack on the competition wouldn’t be well accepted in Japanese culture. So, Apple adapted such ads with focus on exhibiting the benefits of MACs without insulting PCs.

• Brand spaces - brand spaces, as previously discussed, are great ways of adapting to locals personal tastes and preferences and showcase physically the bond between.

As mentioned before, while there are many things that you can change in a Regionalistic brand strategy, there are a few elements that need to be consistent across geographies, such as product quality, brand purpose, essence, values and mission, otherwise a brand may risk confusing the consumer and even losing their trust. Let’s look at IKEA for example.

IKEA is a global brand currently in 62 markets and in all of them it maintains a consistent brand mission: “to create a better everyday life”. This is an accessible and desirable idea wherever the region and location, everyone wants to improve their everyday life. A brand needs to position itself with a purpose to solve issues, then solving it regionally caring in mind different local necessities.

Consumers aren’t necessarily expecting brands to change everything about themselves in order to enter new markets, what they want to see are brands that recognize their uniqueness and their local culture.

This is not only smart but imperative.