The use of branding Strategies within Swedish Craft Brewing

Sammanfattning: Branding strategies is an important theme in business research. The purpose of the study was to explore how the growing industry of craft brewing are using branding strategies in order to strengthen their brand. The study was based on the theory of Kapferer’s brand identity prism and Keller’s Brand Equity model. The method used to gather data was interviews with several breweries spread across Sweden that were then analyzed using thematic data analysis. The findings show that craft brewer are using branding strategies to a large extent, however, not all the elements of the models are included in their strategy. The findings suggest that the reason for this is that the craft brewing industry is unique due to co-opetition and the nation’s strict regulations on marketing of alcohol. Organizations can use these findings to strengthen their brand as well as get a general understanding of how the industry is using branding strategies. This can be beneficial for newly established craft breweries or breweries that desire a stronger brand.