The role of market and product category characteristics in local versus foreign language branding in Latin America

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Farías ◽  
Luis Torres
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Product Category ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Brand Names ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Local Language ◽  
Product Categories

PurposeThis paper explores which market and product category characteristics could influence the use of foreign language brand names (i.e. whether a brand uses a foreign language versus local language brand name) in some of the largest Latin American countries.Design/methodology/approachHypotheses are tested using 880 brands from 39 product categories and nine Latin American markets using a hierarchical logistic regression.FindingsResults revealed that foreign language brand names are more likely to be used in product categories related to local infrastructure, high-tech and global community. In contrast, local language brand names are more likely to be used in product categories associated to subscriptions. Findings also suggest that Hofstede's national cultural dimensions are significant factors. Finally, the results revealed that foreign language brand names are more likely to be used in markets with a low level of foreign language proficiency.Originality/valueThis paper shows the importance of considering market and product category characteristics and their potential influence on local versus foreign language branding in Latin America – an ignored issue in previous research.

scholarly journals DETERMINANTS OF THE SUCCESS OF GLOBAL AND LOCAL BRANDS IN LATIN AMERICA

2015 ◽  
Vol 55 (5) ◽  
pp. 539-550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Farías
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Global Citizenship ◽  
Product Category ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
Product Categories ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Global And Local

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this paper is to address the issue of the implementation of global and local brands in Latin America by drawing on contingency theory to develop and test hypotheses relating to how product category characteristics affect the success of global and local brands in the region. Hypotheses are tested using data obtained from top brands rankings reported in five Latin American markets (Argentina, Brazil, the Caribbean and Central America, Chile and Mexico). The study design considers estimating a logistic regression on a binomial dependent variable measuring whether 475 top brands are global or local brands, with product category characteristics as independent variables. Results reveal that product categories related to subscriptions, local tastes, high-tech, and global citizenship do have an impact on the success of global and local brands in Latin America.

Women on boards of directors in Latin America: building a model

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lidia Heller ◽  
Patricia Gabaldon
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Gender Equity ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Corporate Strategy ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Women On Boards

Purpose Through an analysis of 15 Latin American countries, the purpose of this paper is to explore the importance of several institutional variables (economic, regulatory, and cultural), which affect women’s careers towards being members of boards of directors in the region. Design/methodology/approach Based on primary and secondary information, the authors carry out multivariate analyses to understand the institutional reasons affecting the reduced presence of women on boards of directors in the region. Findings Their findings reveal differences within the region, the importance of protecting women’s professional careers in the labour market, and the effect of cultural dimensions, such as masculinity and power distance. Research limitations and implications The analysis provides an updated cross-section of the institutional and cultural conditions of the 15 countries, considering the limitations to developing data in the region. Practical implications Latin America has witnessed important changes in the dynamics of the labour market over recent decades: women’s participation in the labour force is on the increase, and corporate strategy is evolving towards the incorporation of practices and initiatives to manage the diversity of their talents. However, the presence of women in leadership positions is a pending subject. This study, in part, reveals the institutional origin of gender inequality on boards of directors in the region. The analysis provides essential tools for public policy and for companies to help promote female leadership in the region. Originality/value Recent debate and research on the scarce participation of women on corporative boards of directors have revealed a growing interest in analysing the causes of such issues despite the progress recorded in terms of gender equity in most societies. Studies on the topic in Latin America are scarce and the aim of this paper is to help to fill part of this gap.

Fastrack: pushing the boundaries of brand extension

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Shekar Prabhakar ◽  
Madhavi Lokhande
Keyword(s):  
Joint Venture ◽  
Product Category ◽  
Brand Extension ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Brand Names ◽  
Purchase Behavior ◽  
Distribution Model ◽  
Brand Strategy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Product Categories

Subject area Marketing. Study level/applicability MBA students. Case overview Titan Industries Limited is the world's fifth-largest wristwatch manufacturer and India's leading producer of watches under the Titan, Fastrack, Sonata, Nebula, Raga, Regalia, Octane and Xylys brand names. When a joint venture with Timex came to an end, Titan found themselves without a range of watches for the youth, a growing segment with significant disposable incomes. To serve that segment, they launched a range of “cool” casual watches under the Fastrack from Titan sub-brand in 1998. Sunglasses were also launched but under the Accessories division of the company. In 2003, a decision was taken to combine the watches and sunglasses and spin it off under a new group called “Fastrack and New Brands”. Post this spin-off, Fastrack was launched as a standalone brand with the vision of becoming the most iconic and exciting fashion brand for youth. The overarching strategy was to bring affordable fashion to the youth and bridging the gap between the unorganized market and international brands. The product strategy was to extend the brand rapidly into other accessories such as belts, wallets, bags and wristbands. The brand personality was to be irreverent and comfortable with impropriety. Their communications reflected the brand attitude with edgy advertising. The distribution model adopted was to have their own branded stores. The brand grew from a mere INR30 crores in 2003 to INR770 crores in 2013. As the brand grew largely from moving into adjacent product categories, Fastrack managers were always looking for the next product category to enter and dominate. In 2013-2014, the product category seriously being looked at was two-wheeler helmets – a category dominated largely by the unorganized sector with low quality. The challenge was to take a product category that existed mainly due to safety regulations and turn it into a personal, fashion accessory. Was it a large enough market to penetrate and dominate? Would they be able to change consumer perception of helmets being a necessary evil to being a fashion accessory proudly displayed? Can they change consumer purchase behavior to go shopping for helmets instead ofjust buying the cheapest, comfortable helmet? Would the brand extension into helmets strengthen or dilute brand equity? These were the questions that faced Ronnie Talati, the Chief Marketing Officer. Expected learning outcomes Understand how to go about creating a brand strategy when re-launching it as a standalone brand without the support of the corporate umbrella brand; analyze different product markets to enter and how to arrive at a go/no-go decision; comprehend the challenges of extending the brand into different and sometimes unrelated product categories. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email: [email protected] to request teaching notes.

scholarly journals The Local Aspect in the Successful Brands in Latin America: Empirical Evidence of Its Prevalence, the Role of Local and Global Companies, and Its Effect on Consumers

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 819
Author(s):  
Pablo Farías
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Brand Names ◽  
Brand Name ◽  
Local Language ◽  
Global Companies ◽  
Local Companies ◽  
Low Prevalence ◽  
Brand Portfolios

Local businesses, local brands, and brand names in the local language help to preserve the local culture of a country. Through a content analysis, this study examined the 880 most successful brands in nine Latin American markets to evaluate the prevalence of local companies, local brands, and brand names in the local language among the most successful brands in Latin America. The results showed that local companies and local brands have a low prevalence among the most successful brands in Latin America. This study also revealed that global firms do not use local brands or local-sounding brand names. In contrast, local firms use local-sounding brand names for their local brands. The results showed that the use of local brands and local-sounding brand names is higher in local companies than in global companies. The results demonstrated a low prevalence of local focus among the most successful brands in Latin America, and showed that global companies are driving this low prevalence in the region. The results also indicated that a brand having a local-sounding brand name will increase its success. Therefore, the results suggest that local companies and especially global companies should include local-language brand names in their brand portfolios.

When foreign brands appear local, and local brands appear foreign

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Chen
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Purchase Intention ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Country Of Origin ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Brand Names ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Product Categories ◽  
Foreign Brand ◽  
Foreign Brands

PurposeBoth foreign and local companies frequently name their brands in foreign language on the market of developing countries, and some of them choose to disclose the brands' country of origin to consumers. The purpose of this research is to investigate the joint effects between the practices of disclosing the actual country of origin of the brands and the language of the brand names on consumers' purchase intention for foreign brands and local brands in developing countries.Design/methodology/approachThe proposed hypotheses were tested in two studies, namely an experiment and a field experimental survey, with stimuli from two product categories.FindingsThe results of the two empirical studies with Chinese participants consistently demonstrate that revealing the actual country of origin of the brands undermines consumers' purchase intention for local brands that use foreign brand names, but does not impact consumers' purchase intention for foreign brands that use local brand names.Originality/valueThis research first investigates the effects of adapting the brand names into local language of developing countries for brands from developed countries on consumers' purchase intention, which provides new insight into the literature on foreign branding and country of origin effects as well as practical implications for brand managers.

Management and sustainability dilemmas in Latin America: introduction

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Olivia Hernandez-Pozas ◽  
Maria Jose Murcia ◽  
Enrique Ogliastri ◽  
Miguel R. Olivas-Lujan
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Literature Reviews ◽  
Editorial Work ◽  
Different Dimensions ◽  
Sustainability Challenges ◽  
Specific Contribution

PurposeThis article introduces readers to the Special Issue (SI, 34-1) of ARLA, edited (not exclusively) with the best papers of the Academy of Management's Specialized Conference, scheduled for April 2020 in Mexico City. The COVID-19 pandemic forced its cancellation, but the expert peer review and editorial work continued, to contribute to the emerging literature on Latin American Management and Sustainability.Design/methodology/approachGuest editors contributed their expertise based on required editorial processes and focused literature reviews on Management and Sustainability.FindingsThere are large management and sustainability challenges to Latin American practitioners and researchers, resulting in an increasingly urgent need to systematically document similarities and differences in the fields of Management and Sustainability. It is so because the region has been affected as few others before, during and after the pandemic. Thus, this issue summarizes the literature, presents eight new studies and offers suggestions for future research.Research limitations/implicationsManagement and sustainability in Latin America are wide subjects, with different dimensions and issues. This is a specific contribution that leaves much ground to be covered in the different subfields of the area, in research methodologies and conclusions.Originality/valueAn agenda for advancing the field of management and sustainability in Latin America, highlighted by the COVID-19 disruption; additionally, eight of the most advanced research in the field are presented, chosen from two tracks of a large number of contributions to a recent specialized conference organized by the Academy of Management.

scholarly journals The performance of corporate bond issuers in times of financial crisis: empirical evidence from Latin America

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Berninger ◽  
Bruno Fiesenig ◽  
Dirk Schiereck
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Corporate Bond ◽  
Economic Conditions ◽  
Corporate Debt ◽  
Market Reactions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Financing Decisions ◽  
Theoretical Approaches

PurposeThe fundamental theory of Modigliani and Miller (1958) states that a firm's financing decisions are independent from the firm's value. Nevertheless, several empirical studies as well as theoretical approaches from the past decade impugn this relation for real markets with their immanent inefficiencies. However, these questions are rather than academic in nature: Especially the influence of macroeconomic conditions on the market perception of debt issues is from high economic importance, since the need for new liquidity usually becomes even more urgent when the economic conditions worsen.Design/methodology/approachThis paper analyzes the reaction of shareholders to the issue of debt by Latin American firms under special consideration of the macroeconomic sentiment. To do so, a sample of debt issued by Latin American companies between 2003 and 2010 is empirically examined through an event study.FindingsThe authors empirically demonstrate that specifically in Latin America, debt issuing companies show a significant underperformance during recessionary periods and an overperformance during nonrecessionary periods. These findings differ from previous results for mature capital markets. The authors conclude that not only the overall economic conditions matter to explain stock market reactions on bond issues but also the maturity of the corporate debt market plays an important role.Originality/valueThe authors provide first evidence that the previously described changes in the returns on specific stocks depending on the economic sentiment (Baker and Wurgler, 2006) are under certain conditions also present in the market for corporate debt.

Thinking styles, gender, and decision making in Latin American management

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Camelia Ilie ◽  
Guillermo Cardoza
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Thinking Styles ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Purpose Many studies have analyzed how gender diversity and local culture condition the cognitive styles of managers and affect decision-making processes in organizations. Gender diversity has been defended from an equality perspective; it has been argued to improve decision-making processes and to have a positive impact on companies’ return on investment. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the differences between the thinking styles of men and women, in Latin America and the USA that support decision-making processes. An argument is given in favor of gender diversity in management teams, because of its positive implications in decision making. Design/methodology/approach The measurement instrument used was the Neethling Brain Instrument, developed based on recent neuroscience discovery. The sample comprised 1,216 executives from the USA and several countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, who have participated in executive training programs. Findings The results show differences in thinking styles by gender, but no differences were found in thinking styles or decision making between men and women at the same managerial level in either of the two regions. Similarly, results suggest that executives in the USA tend to base their management models on strategic thinking styles that focus on interpersonal relations and involve risk taking, while executives in Latin American countries tend to prefer thinking and management styles focusing on data analysis, execution, planning, and process control. Originality/value The results of the present study show that, in all regions, men score higher in rational thinking styles associated with the cortical areas, while women gravitate toward thinking styles where emotional schemes prevail, related to subcortical areas. These results could be useful for organizational leaders in charge of allocating roles and tasks to people, based on their thinking style strengths. The results can also be very valuable for Latin American organizations to design specific training and development programs for men and women accordingly with their individual needs and their managerial roles. They can also support the argument that diverse gender teams will guarantee complete decision-making processes.

Viewpoint: the need to evolve to a service logic mindset in Latin America

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier Reynoso
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Journal Article ◽  
Service Organizations ◽  
Service Research ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Original Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Logic

Purpose The purpose of this viewpoint is to discuss the need to evolve from a service marketing approach to a service logic mindset throughout the organization in Latin America. In doing so, it addresses a void in the service literature due to the lack of attention on its uniqueness in this region. Design/methodology/approach To confirm the predominant approach of studying service and the need for a paradigm shift in service organizations, two independent journal article searches during 1989–2020 were conducted. The purpose was to learn where Latin American service researchers are focusing their research efforts and to discuss how the meaning of service applies to this region. Findings Forty-eight journal articles were analyzed and six distinctive groups were identified where service researchers are focusing their work on Latin America. Service has been studied mainly from the marketing perspective; with limited original research published in indexed journals; focused on making product-oriented promises, increasingly enabled by technology. The need for developing a service logic mindset throughout the organization has begun to be emphasized rather recently in the field. The variety of meanings of service and the complex context represent challenges for this enterprise. Research limitations/implications Future research is needed to work on a more comprehensive conceptualization of service at higher levels of analysis. Further context studies are required to enrich knowledge on service in Latin America. Service researchers and organizations should work on these two challenges to continue moving from the marketing perspective of service to a service logic mindset throughout the organization. Originality/value The paper points out the relevance of conducting further service research in Latin America, arguing that service has been studied mainly from the marketing perspective, and claiming the need to move to a service logic mindset. This viewpoint opens a discussion in the service research community toward a paradigm shift that, although inspired in Latin America, may not be necessarily limited to this region.

Latin America food exports to Gulf will expand further

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
The United States ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Adoption Of Innovations ◽  
Total Food ◽  
Food Imports

Significance The GCC imports around 85% of the food its member countries consume domestically, and the share of Latin American products as a proportion of the GCC’s total food imports has increased from 10% in 2015 to almost 14% in 2019. Impacts Pandemic-induced adoption of innovations such as e-commerce will provide opportunities to expand food exports. Post-pandemic recovery in tourism may eventually boost the GCC’s need for food imports. Growth in other markets will be crucial to help reduce LAC’s dependence on key markets such as China and the United States.

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