The Emergence of Nation Sub-Branding: A Case Study on the Discourses of 'The National Developer of Egypt'

Sammanfattning: This thesis explores the emerging strategy of nation sub-branding and critically argues for the domestic implications it has on national identities and the falsely promoted tradition of social justice. The study situates itself within the critical cultural stream of nation branding research, rejecting, however, prior scholarly presumption that a segmented nation brand could mean less marginalization. Embracing Laclau and Mouffe's theory of discourse and their conception of hegemony over identity, this qualitative study looks into a sector-driven case study from Egypt: City Edge Developments (CED), a state-owned real estate brand that caters to the high-end market while promoting itself as 'The National Developer of Egypt'. This (sub-)brand had its début in 2018 with focus on the new urban development projects, including the New Administrative Capital and New Alamein City. Two research questions directed the design of the study: First, observing the meanings CED has fixated through its discursive articulations of the new urban projects by way of scrutinizing selected marketing materials. Second, nine interviews were conducted with Egyptian youths to understand how CED's articulations of the new national urban projects influence their perceptions and attitudes toward the nation brand. Concerned with the discourses of the brand and those of the participants, the findings of the study point out to strong notions of antagonism amid the brand's construction of an imagined society that is seen as alienating and that only privileges the elite while serving economic and political agendas. The results unfold into the conclusion that hegemony intervenes even in the non-monolithic structure of nation branding, thus asserting that the emerging sub-branding strategy within the practice is as problematic to the domestic consumption of the nation brand.