Att varumärka en destination : Fallet Vaxholm

Sammanfattning: The increase in tourism for as well Sweden and Stockholm’s archipelago leads to a heightened competition between the different destinations in the archipelago. There’s also an increase in branding cities and places around the word as well as creating an identity for tourist to recognize themselves in a destination. The creation of a place brand and identity may be one of the most important factors for destinations competitiveness. This study examines how Vaxholm tries to create an identity to influence the destinations current image. The aim of the study is to examine how a destination brands itself to mediate an unified image. The aim is answered by three different question formulations, which contains how Vaxholm brands itself by the cooperation between different stakeholders and how this cooperation is working. The data has been gathered by seven different interviews in a qualitative fashion with members from the organisation “Destination Vaxholm”. The respondents where both members in the destination as well some of them hade a more leading role. The empirical evidence has later been analysed through previous theories written in the field, which makes the study deductive. The results show that Vaxholm is branding their destination through the organisation “Destination Vaxholm”. Through this forum the different stakeholders are allowed to develop and reinforce events and activities, which currently exist on the destination. The members have a will to create an identity and image, which tells a visitor that, its possible to travel to the destination all year around, not just during the summer. The organisation is newly created which makes the cooperation between stakeholders new and the trust between them hasn’t been questioned yet. The result also shows that the organisation is democratic and the will to cooperate between the different members is vital.