<p>The purpose of this essay is to investigate how four companies in Värmland, Sweden, are working strategically with their brands. This is a qualitative method in which we have used a combination of interviews and literature review in order to investigate the link between brands and the Karlstad region.</p><p>Even though there is a huge interest in brands, there are only a few companies who can describe clearly what their own brand represents. This probably due to the fact that the brand is still regarded as a tactical tool, rather than as a strategic one. Because of this we find it very interesting to investigate how organizations in Värmland think about this issue. Are brands regarded as a strategic resource, and how strong is the link between their brands and the region?</p><p>The result indicate that organizations are working strategically with their brands, but they can still get better. Working with brands is a long-term work and the result can not be shown directly. Economic resources and old traditions limit the divisions which work with marketing and their possibilities to develop the brand in becoming an important part of success. Working with brands is a never-ending job, and you must always struggle forward. There is no model for building a strong brand, but we know that a clear vision is a basic condition.</p> / <p>Den här uppsatsen syftar till att undersöka hur fyra värmländska organisationer arbetar med sitt varumärke och hur de ser på varumärket som strategisk resurs. Med hjälp av en kvalitativ metod, i form av intervjuer i kombination med litteraturstudier har vi även tittat på deras varumärkens koppling till regionen.</p><p>Trots att intresset för varumärken är stort, är det få företag som faktiskt kan redogöra för vad det egna varumärket egentligen står för. Detta beror förmodligen på att varumärket fortfarande på många håll betraktas som ett taktiskt hjälpmedel snarare än en strategisk resurs. Därför tycker vi att det är intressant att titta på hur man ser på detta i värmländska organisationer. Betraktas varumärket som en strategisk resurs, hur hög dignitet har den och hur stark är kopplingen till regionen?</p><p>Resultatet visar att samtliga av de berörda organisationerna arbetar strategiskt med varumärket men de kan bli bättre. Varumärkesarbete är mycket långsiktigt och resultaten går knappast att se över en natt. Ekonomiska resurser och gamla traditioner begränsar informations-/marknadsavdelningarnas möjligheter att utveckla varumärket ytterligare och bli en avgörande framgångsfaktor. Varumärkesarbete blir aldrig fullbordat, man måste hela tiden sträva framåt. Det finns ingen fullständig mall för vad som kännetecknar ett starkt varumärke, men att ha en tydlig vision har visat sig vara en förutsättning.</p>

Coffee is a much enjoyed everyday-luxury in many parts of the world. It is not only enjoyed as a stimulant but also for social activities. “Fika” is a Swedish word which is difficult to translate and basically means to-have-coffee-with-friends. Coffee is so loved in Sweden that the average Swede consumes about nine and a half kilogram per year. But coffee often comes with a bitter aftertaste of environmental degradation and social injustice. Pesticide use is one of the environmental problems; some of the most dangerous ones are used in coffee productions. When it comes to social aspects world market prices on coffee has been very low for about two decades. At its worst coffee farmers were paid about a quarter of the production price for their coffee. This has led to a situation of wide spread financial debt, poverty, and sometimes even starvation among farmers. One solution which some farmers take is drug production. Coca is easy to grow and gives high revenue, which may make it appealing to a desperate coffee farmer. Another option can be provided by responsible corporations and concerned consumers –a fair pay. The coffee sector in general and Swedish coffee roasting company Löfbergs Lila AB in particular are used as a case study for this thesis focal point which is the correlation between consumer power and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The large social and environmental problems in the coffee sector make it an area where voluntary responsibilities from consumers and businesses can have a very large positive impact. Sales numbers of organically produced and Fairtrade labelled coffee are increasing due to consumer demand. It is clear that consumer power is one of the cornerstones of CSR. When consumers ask for socially and ecologically sustainable goods corporations can produce these goods with an economical gain, thus a win-win situation occurs for corporate profit and the social-/environmental sphere. Both consumer demand and the possibility for corporate profit seams to be prerequisites for CSR. It is clear that voluntary approaches to sustainable development such as consumer choice and CSR can lead to many positive changes; however concerns arise when it comes to the fulfilment of sustainable development. The ecological footprint gives us a number for the worlds’ total over consumption and it shows that to fulfil sustainable development as defined in “Our common future”, also known as the Brundtland commission, most western countries would have to reduce their total consumption by approximately 75 %. Consumers are driven by many other factors than social and environmental concerns, and companies and corporations have shown many times that there is much talk in CSR but little is actually done. This leads to the conclusion that although some positive changes occur, voluntary actions such as CSR and consumer power/choice will probably not be enough to lead us to a sustainable development.

The purpose of this essay is to investigate how four companies in Värmland, Sweden, are working strategically with their brands. This is a qualitative method in which we have used a combination of interviews and literature review in order to investigate the link between brands and the Karlstad region. Even though there is a huge interest in brands, there are only a few companies who can describe clearly what their own brand represents. This probably due to the fact that the brand is still regarded as a tactical tool, rather than as a strategic one. Because of this we find it very interesting to investigate how organizations in Värmland think about this issue. Are brands regarded as a strategic resource, and how strong is the link between their brands and the region? The result indicate that organizations are working strategically with their brands, but they can still get better. Working with brands is a long-term work and the result can not be shown directly. Economic resources and old traditions limit the divisions which work with marketing and their possibilities to develop the brand in becoming an important part of success. Working with brands is a never-ending job, and you must always struggle forward. There is no model for building a strong brand, but we know that a clear vision is a basic condition. / Den här uppsatsen syftar till att undersöka hur fyra värmländska organisationer arbetar med sitt varumärke och hur de ser på varumärket som strategisk resurs. Med hjälp av en kvalitativ metod, i form av intervjuer i kombination med litteraturstudier har vi även tittat på deras varumärkens koppling till regionen. Trots att intresset för varumärken är stort, är det få företag som faktiskt kan redogöra för vad det egna varumärket egentligen står för. Detta beror förmodligen på att varumärket fortfarande på många håll betraktas som ett taktiskt hjälpmedel snarare än en strategisk resurs. Därför tycker vi att det är intressant att titta på hur man ser på detta i värmländska organisationer. Betraktas varumärket som en strategisk resurs, hur hög dignitet har den och hur stark är kopplingen till regionen? Resultatet visar att samtliga av de berörda organisationerna arbetar strategiskt med varumärket men de kan bli bättre. Varumärkesarbete är mycket långsiktigt och resultaten går knappast att se över en natt. Ekonomiska resurser och gamla traditioner begränsar informations-/marknadsavdelningarnas möjligheter att utveckla varumärket ytterligare och bli en avgörande framgångsfaktor. Varumärkesarbete blir aldrig fullbordat, man måste hela tiden sträva framåt. Det finns ingen fullständig mall för vad som kännetecknar ett starkt varumärke, men att ha en tydlig vision har visat sig vara en förutsättning.