Description
This paper aims to: better understand the country of origin (COO) construct by adopting a
lens of marketplace mythology; and develop a conceptual framework delineating the process of
mythologizing a country through the use of packaging
International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research
It all began with a kiss, or when packaging sells a country
Maria Kniazeva
Article information:
To cite this document:
Maria Kniazeva, (2011),"It all began with a kiss, or when packaging sells a country", International J ournal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality
Research, Vol. 5 Iss 4 pp. 383 - 395
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Olga Ampuero, Natalia Vila, (2006),"Consumer perceptions of product packaging", J ournal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 23 Iss 2 pp.
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Bo Rundh, (2013),"Linking packaging to marketing: how packaging is influencing the marketing strategy", British Food J ournal, Vol. 115 Iss
11 pp. 1547-1563http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/BFJ -12-2011-0297
Bo Rundh, (2009),"Packaging design: creating competitive advantage with product packaging", British Food J ournal, Vol. 111 Iss 9 pp.
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It all began with a kiss, or when packaging
sells a country
Maria Kniazeva
Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to: better understand the country of origin (COO) construct by adopting a
lens of marketplace mythology; and develop a conceptual framework delineating the process of
mythologizing a country through the use of packaging.
Design/methodology/approach – Analysis of narratives on food product packages that claim a
connection to Italy lets this qualitative study join two streams of research – on COO effect and
marketplace mythology.
Findings – The work proposes four mythological properties of the country of origin construct, discusses
their major dimensions, establishes their relationship, and develops a conceptual framework delineating
the mythological nature of the country of origin construct.
Research limitations/implications – Several directions for future research may enhance this study. For
example, the interpretation of the narratives by the consumers of food products claiming an Italian
connection will allow exploring how the mythic structures employed by marketers are read by the
intended readers.
Practical implications – The importance of COO effects on consumer decision making is expected to
become even stronger with current globalization trends that increasingly move products across
countries and force marketers to engage in a battle to differentiate their brands – in many cases by
capitalizing on the origin of products.
Originality/value – By exploring food package stories, the paper focuses on the carrier of mythic
meaning that is under-researched in both COO and marketplace mythology studies. The present study
adds to the understanding of how geography ceases being a mere informational ‘‘Made in’’ statement
and is transformed into a powerful cultural marker, full of symbolically framed meaning.
Keywords Marketplace mythology, Country of origin, Packages, Food, Geographic imagination,
‘‘Made in’’ label, Place marketing, Product management, Packaging
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Tractors made in Russia are poorly constructed. Or so believe those American farmers who
rate Russia as a relatively low-quality tractor maker (Johansson et al., 1994). For such
farmers, the negative product rating comes fromthe Russian connection. Even when given a
technologically attractive product description, based on the standard speci?cation sheets
provided by the manufacturer, the biased farmers do not favor the piece of equipment.
Would a farmer’s negative product perception change if he was also offered a story that
narrates the details on how the engineering idea was born, how a dream came true, or how
obstacles were overcome? What if the farmer is informed that the engineer was in love when
he was working on the project and passionately dedicated his technological masterpiece to
the loved one? What if the farmer becomes aware that the engineer gave birth to his dreamin
a garage – similar to success stories about American computer geniuses Bill Gates and
Steve Jobs? Or will the farmer warm up to the Russia-made tractor if he simply learns about
the beauty of the part of Russia where the plant is located?
DOI 10.1108/17506181111174664 VOL. 5 NO. 4 2011, pp. 383-395, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1750-6182
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH
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PAGE 383
Maria Kniazeva is
Associate Professor of
Marketing in the School of
Business Administration,
University of San Diego,
California, USA.
Received April 2009
Revised November 2009
Accepted April 2010
Please ?nd the video that
accompanies this article at:http://www.emeraldinsight.
com/promo/hospitality_
research.htm
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The reported work does not offer answers to these questions yet. Having taken a broader
perspective, the research aims at contributing to better understanding of country of origin
(COO) construct by adopting a lens of marketplace mythology. Speci?cally, the purpose of
this research is to explore the literary narratives that marketers use to communicate a
particular country connection with a product. Analysis of stories found on product packages
is expected to meet this objective. Thus, the focus will not be on consumer perception of a
country, but on the ?rst steps toward contributing to this perception by marketers. How does
mythologizing the country lead to consumer geographic imagination? What mythological
elements and structures are employed by marketers to create a country of origin imaginative
connotation? By exploring these research questions, we are joining two streams of research
– on COO effect and marketplace mythology. The objective is to develop a conceptual
framework delineating the process of mythologizing a country through the use of packaging.
Country of origin effect, de?ned in marketing literature as a built-up stereotypical perception
of product quality associated with the country of its manufacture, has been attracting
academic attention for over forty years. This research domain has produced an extensive
account of ?ndings. COO is commonly viewed as an intangible product component and a
powerful element of branding strategy (Kleppe et al., 2002; Connell, 2006). The origin of the
product impacts its image, consumer purchase intention, and interpretation of other product
information (Hong and Wyer, 1989). Consumers are found to evaluate a product based on
the match between product and its country of origin (Roth and Romeo, 1992). For example, a
Russian connection adds a positive connotation to caviar (Camgoz and Ertem, 2008), but a
negative connotation to tractors (Johansson et al., 1994). Consumers in collectivist countries
such as Japan appear to commonly view the home country products more favorably, while
those in individualistic countries like the US tend to evaluate the home products higher only
when they are superior to the competition (Gurhan-Canli and Maheswaran, 2000). In
developing countries, those consumers who admire the lifestyles of more advanced
countries are shown to favor non-local goods (Batra et al., 2000). Effects of COO on
purchase intention have been also studied in combination with variables of price, tradition,
familiarity, risk aversion, brand name, consumer nationality, and product necessity (e.g.
Huddleston et al., 2000; Johansson et al., 1994).
These studies have mostly favored high-involvement, expensive, or technologically
sophisticated product categories such as electronics (Amine and Shin, 2002), computers
(Hong and Wyer, 1989), and cars (Haubl, 1996). Low-involvement categories that attracted
researchers’ attention include coffee (Obermiller and Spangenberg, 1988), bottled water
(Connell, 2006), and chocolate (Camgoz and Ertem, 2008). For example, in the latter study
subjects tasted four identical pieces of chocolate, but expressed differing perceptions of
their taste after the chocolate was described as being made in four different countries.
What is not prominent in the COO stream of research is the investigation of the elements of
the country of origin construct as a means of geographical brand identity. What exactly
makes up this construct? Is the label ‘‘Made in’’ suf?cient as COOstudies commonly intimate
when referring to country of origin? In fact, the existing literature appears to focus on
preexisting stereotypes and perceptions of the countries and not on marketing attempts to
?ll the ‘‘Made in’’ label with a distinctive national identity. A good exception is a case study of
Fiji brand bottled water – a bland commodity that has been strongly linked to an ‘‘exotic’’
place and marketed as ‘‘the taste of paradise’’ (Connell, 2006). Exploring how imaginative
geographies of place are constructed as marketing tools that enable the brand to
differentiate itself, the author looks at the use of carefully selected information on the label, on
the brand’s Website and in the media. While describing claims as grandiose, inaccurate,
cliche´ -ridden, and essentialist, the researcher ?nds ‘‘an enormous amount of symbolic
meaning’’ invested in water in order to produce an idyllic product identity shaped around
place (Connell, 2006, p. 349). This conclusion clearly bridges the theory of COO effect with
that of marketplace mythology.
Marketplace myths are those stories that are highly symbolic, rich in mythic archetypes, and
convey deep meanings (Levi-Strauss, 1963; Thompson, 2004). Oral or written, viewed as
‘‘the culture’s story stock’’ (Stern, 1995), they include consumption-oriented stories in
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different forms: tales passed on by consumers, advertising copies (Johar et al., 2001; Holt,
2004), and narratives on the product packages (Santino, 1996; Kniazeva and Belk, 2007).
Two approaches – structuralism and post-structuralism – peacefully coexist in marketplace
mythology studies. While the ?rst focuses on binary oppositions found in consumption
stories (Levy-Strauss, 1963; Levy, 1981) and archetypal themes of nature’s four seasons and
the human life cycle (Stern, 1995), the second approach concerns the content of mythic
narratives and articulates current mythic themes circulating in the marketplace (Holt, 2004;
Kniazeva and Belk, 2007; Thompson and Tian, 2008). Strong links between myths and
consumer values are found in these studies, and commercial storytelling has been shown to
perform an important brand building function. By re?ecting on current needs and beliefs
(Fournier, 1998; Holt, 2004; Thompson, 2004) the stories invest products with brand
personalities (Aaker, 1997) that are expected to ?t into the trends of the marketplace.
Geography has been modestly present in this stream of research. In addition to the analysis
of Fiji bottled water (Connell, 2006), examples include work on mythologizing place itself,
speci?cally the American West (Penaloza, 2001) and the American South (Thompson and
Tian, 2008). Both geographical locales are highly mythologized: while the ?rst has become a
utopian sanctuary of freedom, abundance, and opportunity, the second has been perceived
as a benighted and backward region. Researchers argue, that ‘‘the gaps and overlaps
between historical accounts, representations in popular cultural products, and popular
understandings of the west comprise a fertile ground for consumer researchers interested in
cultural production in the contemporary marketplace’’ (Penaloza, 2001, p. 372). Thus, our
work should contribute to marketplace mythology studies by addressing its under-explored
domain and focusing on ‘‘country’’ as a prominent mythological construct.
Moreover, we aim at entirely focusing on a single form of narrative – package stories. This
carrier of mythic meaning is also under-researched in both COOand marketplace mythology
studies, compared to the attention given to advertising narratives and oral consumer stories
(Escalas, 1998). Even when the story from the Fiji bottle is included in the analysis of the
phenomenal success of its brand building, the story is only explored brie?y. At the same
time, the role of packaging in mythologizing the brand has been evident since the
seventeenth century when packaged patent medicines were ?rst introduced in London. In
fact, one of such packages emphasized the country of origin by narrating on the package
that the physician had learned of this remedy in Italy (Hine, 1995).
The packaging rhetoric is explored in detail in a recent study that focused on food packages
claiming the ‘‘natural’’ origin of their products (Kniazeva and Belk, 2007). Treating packaging
narratives as cultural productions, the authors show how ordinary staple foods are given
grand symbolic meaning. They propose the mechanism of a mythologizing movement that
consists of three major elements: employing narrative structures, ?lling them with mythic
archetypes, and constructing messages full of deep meaning. Skillfully following these
steps, marketers have been collectively creating a grand postmodern myth of a powerful
consumer, according to the article. This conceptual framework gives a directional foundation
for our research.
Method and design
The unit of analysis in this qualitative study is the narrative found on food packages claiming
an Italian connection. The decision to focus on food and not, for example, on tractors, was
governed by the nature of food as a product category. Food is a commodity used by all
humans, and not by a speci?c group of consumers. Therefore, decisions to buy foodstuffs
are made on a regular basis. Compared to heavily rationalized decisions to buy, for example,
a car, or a tractor, they are generally believed to be low-involvement decisions, though they
can also be framed by strong political agendas (Thompson and Coskuner-Balli, 2007) as
when consumers are willing to support local farmers or have health concerns (Mazis and
Raymond, 1997).
The second reason for this product category choice is food’s powerful cultural connotations
(Meigs, 1997). Performing as cultural agents, food items convey values, beliefs, histories,
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and traditions. Moreover, ‘‘embedded within the hamburger or ?zzy drink are images of
identity waiting to be consumed’’ (James, 1996, p. 82), including those of the countries they
represent (Brownlie et al., 2005).
Finally, food easily travels across borders, and while doing so, food carries cultural
uniqueness and seems to resist global standardization. ‘‘Examined in the context of
globalization, food does not really agree with one of the major postulates of globalization:
sameness,’’ according to Kniazeva et al. (2007). Quoting one of their respondents, whose
favorite places to go at a supermarket are the ‘‘aisles that are not American,’’ they show how
foodstuffs let consumers travel the world:
Ninety percent of the time, I go there ?rst [. . .] I’ll pick up the bottle and read the label and I’ll see
what’s in it and I think about what it could possibly taste like and it will say what they suggest to
serve it with or whatever.
And because food products ‘‘are increasingly marketed by place’’ (Connell, 2006, p. 342),
local grocery stores become important vehicles of geography induced images.
We purposely focus on food products claiming Italian origin and sold in the US. The Italian
connotation translates into a positive perceived value of products in the country that
received most of Italy’s overall trade exports in 2005, according to Economist Intelligence
Unit. The subject in the above mentioned study ?nds Italian food to be ‘‘the most enjoyable
food to make’’ (Kniazeva et al., 2007). Italian cuisine is favored for its pizza, pasta, cheeses,
olive oils, vinegar, wines, and biscuits, and we intend to show how marketers attempt to
maintain and/or extend this favorable image through commercial story telling. This task
poses a great challenge given the ‘‘giddying’’ variety of Italian food that boasts 142 different
labels just for those types of pasta that begin with C and which are formally presented in a
‘‘World Directory of Pasta Shapes and Names’’ compiled by Italian manufacturers:
Italians have made the task even tougher by disseminating endless myths and misconceptions.
Everywhere one goes, the people in one small town will swear blind that their salami, their cheese,
their nougat is a distinct and altogether more delicious creation than the identical version
available across the valley (Dickie, 2007).
Unlike works that focus on cookbooks as cultural productions (Brownlie et al., 2005) and
academic and popular writing about food (James, 1996) that explore the ways in which food
is variously imaged, we are turning our attention to the narratives on the packages.
Our data were collected in the US and include 30 foodstuff items bought at grocery stores,
with one item ordered online. The set represents a collection that can easily be found in the
kitchen of a typical US household. The purpose was to ‘‘effortlessly’’ buy ordinary items, and
the major discriminating criteria was the presence of at least one claimabout an Italian origin
(i.e. ‘‘Made in Italy,’’ ‘‘Italian product,’’ or ‘‘Product of Italy’’) in addition to the Italy-related
story presented on the box, bottle, can, bag, or a carton. The products that contained mere
nutritional information or instructions for use did not qualify for the study. Chocolate candy,
cake, jam, bottled water, coffee, olive oil; balsamic vinegar, pasta, and biscuits make up the
range of product categories (see Table I).
Data analysis employed procedures for developing grounded theory as the most relevant
approach to meet our exploratory objective and to look for various themes (Strauss and
Corbin, 1998). We aimed at uncovering the major properties of the country of origin
construct and their dimensions in order to arrive at an understanding of the process of
mythologizing a country. After the initial close reading of the package narratives, we saw
repetitions in the communicated themes which let us center our in-depth analysis on ten
representative narratives.
Further, when references, for example, to technology became evident in the stories, we
distinguished technology as one of the properties of the COO construct. Looking at its
dimensions, we performed an open and axial coding. This provided us with the following
binary oppositions: fake – authentic, modern – traditional, made – created, careless –
painstaking, fast – slow, with chemicals and pesticides – without chemicals and pesticides,
machine-made – hand-made, generic – special, impersonal – personal. We then
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distinguished those descriptors that were directly utilized or implied in the package
narratives in relation to technology and the processes used to make the analyzed food items.
The set of these descriptors let us see the emphasis on authenticity.
We performed the same analysis and coding for each of the four major properties that we
saw in our data. This approach allowed us to trace connections between the properties and
to develop the conceptual framework titled ‘‘Mythologizing the country.’’ The following
chapters present our ?ndings in detail and articulate those components of country of origin
construct that mythologize a country and are intended to result in consumer geographic
imagination.
Data analysis
The construct of country of origin reveals four major properties in our data: geography,
people, time, and technology. These geographical, social, temporal, and technological
factors become crucial elements of exclusivity – a major theme penetrating stories on the
packages of food products claiming an Italian connection.
Property 1 – inspiring geography
Narratives that make reference to speci?c regions in Italy provide various degrees of detail –
fromthe mere mention of a geographical place – other than Italy itself – to poetically framing
dry geographical descriptions. When names of geographical features are just dropped, they
function as a background for grand events connected to the product in the package. For
example, Milan is presented as a place where many years ago a love story unfolded. This is
where a young nobleman fell in love with a baker’s daughter and created a sweet cake to
impress her father. The cake was so good, that its reputation soon traveled over the Alps to
Sicily – two more regional markers used in the narrative of the Traditional Italian Cake
Panettone.
When geography of region is presented in some detail, different geographical elements are
used to amplify the Italian connection to the product. ‘‘Campo?lone is a small hilltown in the
Table I Products claiming an Italian connection
Product
category Brand name
Time referred to in the
narrative
Geographic locale referred to
in the narrative Invested personality
Biscuit Specialita Regionali Italiane
Biscotti Chiostro Di Saronno
1700 Saronno, Lombardy, Tuscany,
Piedmont, Liguria
Family
Biscuit Amaretti Soft 18th century Saronno Family
Candy Baci Nearly a century ago Italy Accomplished confectioner;
heir to Perugina
Cake Panettone The 1400s Milan; Alps Mountains; Sicily Young nobleman; baker’s
daughter Tony; baker
Pasta La Campo?lone Egg Pasta Over 400 years ago;
1560; 1912
Campo?lone in the central
Italian province of Ascoli
Piceno, overlooking the
Adriatic sea
Grandmother Adorna
Albanesi; grandfather; pasta
makers
Jam Prickly Pear Jam Castelbuono in the province of
Palermo; Sicily
The Fiasconaro Brothers
Bottled
water
Italian Sparkling Mineral Water Tuscan Appennine Mountains
Coffee Antico Caffe Greco Over two centuries
back
Rome, 86 via Condotti Goethe; Rossini;
Mendelssohn; Berlioz
Olive oil Mama Mucci’s Extra Virgin Olive
Oil
For over 2,000 years;
century old
Area between the
Mediterranean Sea and the
Mountains of the Montelongo
(Molise) region
Balsamic
vinegar
Mama Mucci’s Authentic Italian
Balsamic Vinegar
15th century Italy
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central Italian province of Ascoli Piceno, overlooking the Adriatic Sea. There, for over 400
years, artisan pasta makers have produced unique homemade pasta called
‘Maccheroncini.’’’ So begins the narrative on the La Campo?lone Egg Pasta package.
This story lets the reader envision a cute little town with a refreshing sea breeze that
prompted a creative approach to pasta making.
‘‘Sicily’s sun’’ is a selling motive in the narrative accompanying a glass jar of Prickly Pear jam.
‘‘Sicily’s sun and ?avors have been captured for you,’’ claims the product ‘‘Bottega Siciliana
del Gusto’’ created by the Fiasconaro brothers. The brothers, the reader learns, were from
Castelbuono in the Province of Palermo, and they were inspired by this region when they
created their jam. Similarly, the Tuscan Appennine Mountains are a geological marker for a
bottled water brand. According to the narrative, the ‘‘precious minerals and channels’’ of
these mountains make the water ‘‘truly unique and unmistakable.’’ The water is
anthropomorphized in the short passage describing its path to the bottle: ‘‘It comes to
light after a relentless journey through precious minerals and channels in the Tuscan
Appennine Mountains.’’
The signi?cance of geography is even more pronounced in the narrative placed on the glass
bottle of Mama Mucci’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil: ‘‘Between the Mediterranean Sea and the
Mountains of the Montelongo (Molise) region lies an area with the rich, fertile soil, ideal
climate and altitude necessary to grow the perfect olive.’’ The geological details of soil,
climate and altitude are presented as intrinsic elements of the ?nal product. The bottle is
metaphorically said to offer ‘‘fragrant characteristics of the region,’’ and not simply extra
virgin olive oil.
In a similar metaphorical manner, the box of biscuits Specialita Regionali Italiane Biscotti
pompously boasts ‘‘to represent to the world’’ some of the ‘‘wonderful Italian regions.’’ The
regions are listed in the narrative, with each region being symbolized by different type of the
company’s products: ‘‘Lombardy (Amaretti crunchy and soft), Tuscany (Cantuccini classic
and chocolate), Piedmont (Baci) and Liguria (Canestrelli).’’ Moreover, the geographical
poetry includes one more signi?cant location – that of the center of the town of Saronno. The
center is said to house the Cloister which has ‘‘always’’ been the residence of the founding
family. The package even has a picture of the residence and indirectly invites the consumer
on a vicarious travel experience.
As part of the experience of ‘‘?ne Italian coffee,’’ the package of Antico Cafe´ Greco
welcomes the coffee drinker to Rome, providing a speci?c address. At 86 via Condotti,
promises the narrative, visitors will ?nd themselves at one of the oldest coffeehouses of
Rome – with ‘‘elegant rooms ?lled with artistic collections that tell us of its rich, historic past.’’
In this paragraph, mere geography harmoniously co-exists with Italian history.
Close reading of ten food product narratives reveals thirteen geographic locales. Geological
elements utilized in the package stories include names of mountains, seas, provinces,
regions, towns, and speci?c addresses. The sun, groundwater, minerals, soil, climate, hills,
altitude and mountain channels are present in these stories not as anonymous geographic
descriptors but as important literary details whose function is to set up a story background
by creating a sense of geographic exclusivity. Geography is signi?cant in these stories for
the inspiration created in those who, in turn, give birth to the products that cross oceans and
travel the world.
Property 2 – passionate people
Analysis of characters populating the packaging narratives presents a colorful collection of
personalities, all with a strong Italian connection. Their description is a teasing combination
of factual information and missing details which give supposedly real people an attractive
legendary ?avor. Among them there are composers, a writer, a grandmother, brothers, a
young nobleman, and an accomplished confectioner. Some of them have names, others do
not.
‘‘One of Perugina’s accomplished confectioners’’ is the major hero in the narrative
accompanying the box of Baci chocolate candies. No name, just her culinary skills
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(‘‘accomplished’’) introduce the woman who fell in love with the heir to Perugina, an old
Italian company. In a world without telephones and computers, she came up with her own
way to express love: the woman created chocolate candies that she would wrap in secret
notes and send to the heir. Why ‘‘secret’’? Was her social status too low? Did the heir return
her love? The readers are left to ?nish the story, to ?ll the story in with desirable details. He
was young – that’s the only descriptor given about the heir. The narrative implies a dramatic
course of events – ‘‘wonderful and often tumultuous course of love.’’ Without reporting the
happy ending, the ?nal message is reassuring: in this unstable ever-changing world
romance can last forever, or this is what the company claims to know. The candies in this
story symbolize love: ‘‘Baci, the Passion of Italy. It all began with a kiss [. . .] In Italian, Baci
(ba-chee) means ‘kisses.’ And while chocolate says romance in any language, the Baci
chocolate kiss personi?es romance.’’
A ‘‘[y]oung nobleman in Milan’’ – the one who had to win the heart of the baker to get the
hand of his daughter – remains nameless as well. Nor is much said about his beloved.
Her name was Toni. The reader learns this fact only because the cake is said to be
named after her – ‘‘Pan de Toni’’ – which explains its current name Panettone. How did
she look? Was she beautiful? Did they marry? ‘‘No one knows whether the man was
successful in his romantic quest,’’ says the narrative. The lack of details turns the story
into a mystery, making the story both a real account of historical events and a folk story.
What remains inherently real is the ‘‘fruit of labor of love’’ that has become ‘‘the cake of all
Italians.’’
A different kind of love is claimed to be in the La Campo?lone Egg Pasta. It was Adorna
Albanesi, the grandmother of the current pasta makers, who started the ‘‘la Campo?lone’’
company in 1912 and used a traditional, regional pasta-making technique that became
famous throughout Italy. Adorna was evidently an entrepreneurial woman, as at ?rst she
owned a local trattoria. Her trattoria is described as popular, and a reader can imagine a
crowded joyful place that inspired Adorna to focus on making pasta. Along with her
husband, she put a lot of ‘‘love and attention’’ into her pasta-making business, and passed
on this approach to her grandchildren who now make ‘‘traditional artisan pasta.’’ Thus, the
connection to a grandmother symbolically implies tradition.
Behind the Specialita Regionali Italiane Biscotti is ‘‘the family.’’ ‘‘Our family is one of the
oldest manufacturers of biscuits and liqueurs in Italy. Based in Saronno and known for the
famous Amaretti since 1700, the family is committed to offering a wide variety of high quality
biscuits to our customers.’’ The ‘‘oldest manufacturers of biscuits in Italy’’ are now gone, but
their commitment remains alive with their descendants, who still live in their ancestors’
residence. This residence houses ‘‘a very famous historical archive’’ with all its family recipes
and secrets. Personi?cation is historically framed in this passage.
The German writer Goethe and European composers Rossini, Mendelssohn and Berlioz
did not create any cakes or candies. Neither did they make pasta or biscuits. However,
having left to the world literary and musical masterpieces, these world-famous characters
are now endorsing the product which they are said to have loved passionately – coffee.
Being patrons of the Antico Caffe Greco coffeehouse in Rome, these Europeans sipped
coffee in a symbolic action of expressing their personal freedoms, the coffee package
tells us. Did they ponder their future masterpieces over cups of coffee? The narrative of
the Antico Caffe Greco coffee beans reminds the reader of the rebellious nature of these
people of art, for whom coffee became ‘‘inspiration for a new concept in ‘‘individual
liberties.’’
Purposely personifying food products by populating themwith real or not-so-real people, the
narratives give the goods the symbolic power to solve human problems, such as winning
over one’s love or expressing a need for freedom. In addition, all the characters, with names
or without them, appear to have one thing in common – a characteristically Italian passion
that romanticizes their quests in business, love, and art. In turn, the created or consumed
products – chocolate kisses, cakes laden with raisins, artisanal pasta, and de?ant coffee –
become symbolic creations of passion as well.
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Property 3 – historical time
The property of time is strongly at play in the short narratives that attempt to intensify the
Italian association of the products by distancing them in time from the present. Time is alive
in the narratives that venerate the old and glamorize the past. Numbers are generously used
here: ‘‘over 400 years ago’’, ‘‘since 1700,’’ ‘‘in 1400s,’’ ‘‘over two thousand years.’’ They are
not faceless symbols; numbers talk symbolically on the packages by adding historical
signi?cance to the otherwise insigni?cant past. The count often goes by centuries, as
‘‘years’’ do not always manage to convey the magnitude of events: ‘‘nearly a century ago,’’
‘‘over two centuries back,’’ ‘‘traced back to the rituals of the ?fteenth century.’’ Even olive
trees are depicted as a century old. The vocabulary used is historical: it includes ‘‘archives,’’
‘‘rituals,’’ ‘‘golden age,’’ ‘‘?rst cold press.’’ Seemingly exact and approximate at the same
time, the indicated time provides both some factual evidence and legendary ?avor. The
products contained in the boxes and bottles – as mundane and ordinary as they may
appear at ?rst sight – are made out to be rooted not just in the past, but in history.
Reading these food package narratives provides a solid historical account of former beliefs
in the curative properties of products and of affairs of both, grandiose and lesser
signi?cances. They present the reader with a curious lesson in history. The process that is
used to make Mama Mucci’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil ‘‘has been practiced for over 2,000 years’’
and is termed the ‘‘First Cold Press.’’ The same brand elevates the historical importance of
its balsamic vinegar by taking the reader to the ?fteenth century, when ‘‘Balsamico’’ was
thought to be a healing potion. The romantic battle for the baker’s daughter that resulted in
the birth of the Panettone cake took place in the 1400s. Baci’s saga ‘‘all began with a kiss’’
nearly a century ago when a confectioner sent chocolate candies with secret love notes to
the Perugina heir.
The artisan pasta makers of Campo?lone started making their famous pasta over 400 years
ago; the family of biscuit makers has been ‘‘known for the famous Amaretti since 1700.’’ And
over two centuries back, the coffeehouse in Rome, poetically described on the package of
Antico Caffe Greco coffee, attracted creative German, French and Italian minds who would
later create great dramas and write inspired and passionate music ‘‘for a golden age.’’
Perfect Italian biscuits and the best vinegars owe their exceptionality to the ‘‘centuries-old
Italian archives’’ which act as faithful keepers of gastronomical secrets. The company’s
biscuits are said to be special, because ‘‘all traditions are preserved in a very famous
historical archive.’’ Family recipes are claimed to have traveled down through the years from
generation to generation. These recipes metaphorically bridge the past with the present.
Baci chocolate kisses, now wrapped in love notes written in four languages, epitomize as
much romance as they did a century ago. Though tailored to the current demands, it is
implied that the current products remain the same. Old is good when old is history, is the
message communicated in the narratives glamorizing the Italian past for the bene?t of
biscuits and jams in the present. Thus, it is not the age of the product, but historical distance
in time that the numbers in the narratives symbolize.
Property 4 – authentic technology
The description of techniques used to make food products appears as poetry of production.
This seemingly dry property generates the highest number of emotionally-charged
dimensions. Juxtaposition of modern and traditional methods, painstaking and careless
processes, mass-produced and hand-nurtured products glori?es the authentic approach.
Ingredients boast of exclusivity: vinegars are made fromthe ?nest trebbiano grapes, olive oil
is pressed from the estate olives, and only Sicilian fruit is used for jam. A Campo?lone Egg
Pasta making technique is narrated as follows:
Our artisan pasta is produced from the highest quality ingredients: pure durum wheat semolina
and very fresh eggs without the addition of any water. In keeping with the traditional process, the
dough is rolled out especially thin and then allowed to dry slowly and gradually at just slightly
higher than room temperature.
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The narrative utilizes additional adverbs to dramatize the literary depiction of the
technological process: the eggs are very fresh, the dough is especially thin, and the
temperature is slightly higher.
Overall, the stories metaphorically present an impressive triumph of authenticity. The
processes are uniformly ‘‘painstaking’’ and meticulous: hazelnuts for Baci candies are
‘‘?nely chopped,’’ the grapes for Mama Mucci’s vinegar are ‘‘crushed gently.’’ The
techniques celebrate manual labor by making ‘‘hand-made’’ a sign of Italian resistance to
the dominance of mass production. In the idyllic world portrayed in the narratives, olives are
‘‘hand picked,’’ and the jar of jam boasts ‘‘a completely hand-made production.’’ No room
exists for chemicals, pesticides or preservatives in this world that favors a traditional slow
pace: the liquid for vinegar is stored ‘‘at least four years in uncorked oak casks,’’ olives are
‘‘pressed within hours’’ and not minutes, and pasta dough is allowed to dry ‘‘slowly and
gradually.’’
The processes are reportedly exact recreations of those that originated centuries ago.
Artisan pasta makers still use a special technique without water, and ‘‘large stone wheels’’
press olives which lets the olive oil makers describe their production as genuine preparation
‘‘assuring that you hold in your hand an oil of uncompromised quality, unspoiled and
authentic.’’ In addition, not only can the production can be easily visualized through the
impressive account of details, but the voices of the makers and producers resonate
powerfully in the narratives, which moves them away from impersonal generic depictions.
‘‘Today we produce our Maccheroncini with the same love and attention that our
grandparents used years ago,’’ La Campo?lone pasta makers promise. ‘‘Buon Appetito!’’
‘‘La Dolce Vita!’’ ‘‘From Italy to Your Table!’’ – such are the happy endings offered by the
packages of products claiming an Italian connection.
As a result, food products metaphorically become ‘‘a celebration for the palate’’ and ‘‘fruits
of labor of love.’’ The foods are symbolically presented as fragile pieces of gastronomic art:
pasta is ‘‘deliciously light,’’ olive oil and cakes are ‘‘delicate,’’ biscuits and coffee are ‘‘?ne,’’
bread is ‘‘subtly’’ sweet. Vinegar signi?es harmony by supposedly achieving a ‘‘wonderful
sweet-and-sour balance.’’ Narratives generously promise to deliver sensual experiences:
Italian Mineral Water is said to give ‘‘the palate a mildly sharp sensation.’’ ‘‘A smooth
pleasant aroma with dark caramel sweetness’’ highlights Antico Caffe Greco coffee. The
‘‘silky’’ chocolate Baci candies hint at ‘‘a rich, sensual delight.’’
The shape of these products is also distinctive: cake looks like a ‘‘unique dome,’’ and pasta
promises ‘‘very thin strips’’ that keep their shape and ?avor after cooking.’’ ‘‘Superior,’’
‘‘uncompromised,’’ ‘‘unspoiled,’’ ‘‘high quality,’’ ‘‘truly unique’’ and ‘‘unmistakable’’ – those
are the adjectives meant to communicate authenticity. The country connection is strong and
direct in this narration on the packages: Prickly Pear symbolizes ‘‘unmistakably Sicilian
taste,’’ Specialita Regionali Italiane Biscotti claimto be the ‘‘best known Italian biscuits,’’ and
the ‘‘cake of all Italians’’ Panettone invites consumers to share ‘‘the traditional taste of rustic
Italy.’’
Discussion: familiarity plus mystique
Commercial narratives, although constrained by the space available on boxes and bottles of
food products, perform a big mythological function: they create imaginative elements of a
country and plant them into ordinary staple goods as if providing the blocks for building an
image of the country. Based on our analysis, we propose a conceptual framework that
delineates the mythological creation of country of origin construct. The country is
mythologized by making use of heroes, plots and con?icts, a process that is characteristic of
myths, which favor symbol-?lled archetypes carrying value-laden messages (Kniazeva and
Belk, 2007).
Four properties of the COO construct uncovered in out study correlate to the where, who,
when and how elements of mythological narration. Combined together, they magnify
geographic, social, temporal, and technological exclusivity adding up to the perceived
exclusivity of a product (see Figure 1). The ?rst property, geography, while articulating its
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dimension of distinctiveness, sets up a background for an imaginative exercise by the
consumer. The social property personi?es the background through the inclusion of with
passionate characters. The time property adds historical ?avor by stressing the dimension of
the past. Finally, the property of technology, glamorizing the process of production through
its authentic nature, equips the readers of the narrative with a rich set of elements needed to
prompt their geographic imagination. These claims to authenticity parallel ones commonly
found in contemporary Western food writing and journalism that ?nd marks of authenticity in
diversity, in the small scale, and in local artisanal modes of production (James, 1996).
While attempting to engage readers in this imaginative exercise, the narratives appear to
carefully balance factual information with legendary elements. Details provide the reader
with some geographical knowledge and add to what was termed ‘‘the comfort of familiarity’’
in earlier studies of COO effect which stressed the importance of creating a ‘‘brand
franchise’’ until the customers experience such comfort (Johansson et al., 1994).
Key elements left out ?ll the narrative with some mystique and encourage creative
visualization. Such balance leaves enough room for geographic imagination. For example,
the real geographical place (Milan) and time (in the 1400s) of the event add credibility to the
story about the man who created a delicious cake to impress the father of his loved one. The
statement that ‘‘nobody knows’’ if the young man succeeded in his quest adds mystery. In a
similar manner, the narrative about one of the oldest coffeehouses in Rome invites the
consumer to wind through its ‘‘elegant rooms ?lled with artistic collections.’’ While providing
the address of the coffeehouse, the story does not give any details on what makes the rooms
elegant or what collections they house. Thus, the imaginative mind of the reader comes into
play to ?ll in the blanks. Here, we see some parallels with ‘‘the blend of fantasy and reality’’
that has been found in marketing of the US west: ‘‘Consumption of the Old West literally in
land and minerals, and ?guratively in popular cultural products, is important in fueling the
blend of fantasy and reality that remains today’’ (Penaloza, 2001, p. 372).
As a result, a perceived image of a country can be ?exible enough to ?t with the values of the
reader. Thus, linking particular foodstuffs to particular geographic locales, embodied by
sets of cultural elements, narratives provide what can be termed ‘‘a ?exible symbolic vehicle
for self-identity’’ (James, 1996, p. 80). This ?exible outcome obtains particular importance in
the global marketing of Western products that is often criticized for spreading materialist and
decadent Western values across cultures (Classen and Howes, 1996). In addition, the
values communicated in the analyzed narratives clearly utilize mythological structures that
Figure 1 Mythologizing the country
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capitalize on cross-cultural commonalities. The portrayed heroes are universal archetypes of
family members; the plots revolve around the theme of love; the values glorify hard work,
creativity and preservation of strong communal ties. The con?icts signify the idea of power
and imply the overcoming social barriers of inequality, and they juxtapose nature with the
automated culture of modern production. According to the traditional mythic narration,
natural elements are anthropomorphized: underground waters undertake ‘‘a relentless
journey,’’ the sun is ‘‘captured,’’ products are ‘‘born,’’ chocolates ‘‘talk,’’ the taste is
‘‘sealed,’’ the biscuits ‘‘sit side by side.’’
Such mythological poetry skillfully creates a combined image of an idyllic country with
imaginative elements of romance and passion, creativity and inspiration, authenticity and
history, hard work and beautiful geography. How can something coming from this country
not be delicious? Only the exceptional, extraordinary, and memorable can originate in such a
place. The exaggerated, global celebration claimed on the package of Panettone cake
seems highly believable: ‘‘Today, people around the world mark holidays, special occasions
and everyday gatherings with this legendary dessert.’’
Conclusion
Our research supports claims made in previous studies on the function of food as an
important part of the global village’s patchwork culture. By consuming Chinese, Indian and
Italian foods, the British, for example, embrace ‘‘a way of living a local life with and through
global imagery’’ (James, 1996). These consumption practices let consumers experience the
world vicariously: ‘‘By voluntary tasting unfamiliar foods that are consumed on a daily basis
by others, they expand their personal worlds’’ (Kniazeva et al., 2007). Narratives that
marketers place on food packages to emphasize connections to particular countries, help
this expansion occur by adding familiar and mystic elements to particular cultures. Dressing
a ‘‘naked’’ biscuit in a package that offers a story adds character to the product and prompts
the consumer’s geographic imagination. In fact, the packaging transformed an ordinary
biscuit ‘‘into a position of importance on the tables of the Victorian diner’’ (Sacharow, 1982).
The importance of COO effects on consumer decision making is expected to become even
stronger with current globalization trends that increasingly move products across countries
and force marketers to engage in a battle to differentiate their brands – in many cases by
capitalizing on the origin of products.
We now envision several directions for future research. First, the interpretation of the
narratives by the consumers of food products claiming an Italian connection will allow
exploring how the mythic structures employed by marketers are read by the intended
readers. Second, the analysis of illustrations on the packages will demonstrate the power of
visual images in creating a country of origin effect. Finally, cross-cultural reading of
narratives – those that market differing countries – will uncover additional properties of the
COO construct. Moving in these directions will minimize the limitations of the present study
and add to the understanding of how geography ceases being a mere informational ‘‘Made
in’’ statement and is transformed into a powerful cultural marker, full of symbolically framed
meaning. From anonymous geographic enigma to distinctive geographic image is a road
worth exploring by marketers.
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About the author
Maria Kniazeva is an Associate Professor of Marketing at The University of San Diego. She
earned her PhD in Management with specialization in marketing from the University of
California, Irvine, and her Master’s in Journalism from Leningrad (St Petersburg, Russia)
State University. An ethnic Russian, she used to live in Estonia where she worked as an
executive editor of a newspaper and a freelance business consultant to foreign investors.
Maria Kniazeva can be contacted at:[email protected]
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This article has been cited by:
1. Maria Kniazeva. 2015. Eastern spirituality in the western marketplace. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal
18:4, 459-476. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
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doc_151077316.pdf
This paper aims to: better understand the country of origin (COO) construct by adopting a
lens of marketplace mythology; and develop a conceptual framework delineating the process of
mythologizing a country through the use of packaging
International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research
It all began with a kiss, or when packaging sells a country
Maria Kniazeva
Article information:
To cite this document:
Maria Kniazeva, (2011),"It all began with a kiss, or when packaging sells a country", International J ournal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality
Research, Vol. 5 Iss 4 pp. 383 - 395
Permanent link to this document:http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/17506181111174664
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Olga Ampuero, Natalia Vila, (2006),"Consumer perceptions of product packaging", J ournal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 23 Iss 2 pp.
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Bo Rundh, (2013),"Linking packaging to marketing: how packaging is influencing the marketing strategy", British Food J ournal, Vol. 115 Iss
11 pp. 1547-1563http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/BFJ -12-2011-0297
Bo Rundh, (2009),"Packaging design: creating competitive advantage with product packaging", British Food J ournal, Vol. 111 Iss 9 pp.
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It all began with a kiss, or when packaging
sells a country
Maria Kniazeva
Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to: better understand the country of origin (COO) construct by adopting a
lens of marketplace mythology; and develop a conceptual framework delineating the process of
mythologizing a country through the use of packaging.
Design/methodology/approach – Analysis of narratives on food product packages that claim a
connection to Italy lets this qualitative study join two streams of research – on COO effect and
marketplace mythology.
Findings – The work proposes four mythological properties of the country of origin construct, discusses
their major dimensions, establishes their relationship, and develops a conceptual framework delineating
the mythological nature of the country of origin construct.
Research limitations/implications – Several directions for future research may enhance this study. For
example, the interpretation of the narratives by the consumers of food products claiming an Italian
connection will allow exploring how the mythic structures employed by marketers are read by the
intended readers.
Practical implications – The importance of COO effects on consumer decision making is expected to
become even stronger with current globalization trends that increasingly move products across
countries and force marketers to engage in a battle to differentiate their brands – in many cases by
capitalizing on the origin of products.
Originality/value – By exploring food package stories, the paper focuses on the carrier of mythic
meaning that is under-researched in both COO and marketplace mythology studies. The present study
adds to the understanding of how geography ceases being a mere informational ‘‘Made in’’ statement
and is transformed into a powerful cultural marker, full of symbolically framed meaning.
Keywords Marketplace mythology, Country of origin, Packages, Food, Geographic imagination,
‘‘Made in’’ label, Place marketing, Product management, Packaging
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Tractors made in Russia are poorly constructed. Or so believe those American farmers who
rate Russia as a relatively low-quality tractor maker (Johansson et al., 1994). For such
farmers, the negative product rating comes fromthe Russian connection. Even when given a
technologically attractive product description, based on the standard speci?cation sheets
provided by the manufacturer, the biased farmers do not favor the piece of equipment.
Would a farmer’s negative product perception change if he was also offered a story that
narrates the details on how the engineering idea was born, how a dream came true, or how
obstacles were overcome? What if the farmer is informed that the engineer was in love when
he was working on the project and passionately dedicated his technological masterpiece to
the loved one? What if the farmer becomes aware that the engineer gave birth to his dreamin
a garage – similar to success stories about American computer geniuses Bill Gates and
Steve Jobs? Or will the farmer warm up to the Russia-made tractor if he simply learns about
the beauty of the part of Russia where the plant is located?
DOI 10.1108/17506181111174664 VOL. 5 NO. 4 2011, pp. 383-395, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1750-6182
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH
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PAGE 383
Maria Kniazeva is
Associate Professor of
Marketing in the School of
Business Administration,
University of San Diego,
California, USA.
Received April 2009
Revised November 2009
Accepted April 2010
Please ?nd the video that
accompanies this article at:http://www.emeraldinsight.
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The reported work does not offer answers to these questions yet. Having taken a broader
perspective, the research aims at contributing to better understanding of country of origin
(COO) construct by adopting a lens of marketplace mythology. Speci?cally, the purpose of
this research is to explore the literary narratives that marketers use to communicate a
particular country connection with a product. Analysis of stories found on product packages
is expected to meet this objective. Thus, the focus will not be on consumer perception of a
country, but on the ?rst steps toward contributing to this perception by marketers. How does
mythologizing the country lead to consumer geographic imagination? What mythological
elements and structures are employed by marketers to create a country of origin imaginative
connotation? By exploring these research questions, we are joining two streams of research
– on COO effect and marketplace mythology. The objective is to develop a conceptual
framework delineating the process of mythologizing a country through the use of packaging.
Country of origin effect, de?ned in marketing literature as a built-up stereotypical perception
of product quality associated with the country of its manufacture, has been attracting
academic attention for over forty years. This research domain has produced an extensive
account of ?ndings. COO is commonly viewed as an intangible product component and a
powerful element of branding strategy (Kleppe et al., 2002; Connell, 2006). The origin of the
product impacts its image, consumer purchase intention, and interpretation of other product
information (Hong and Wyer, 1989). Consumers are found to evaluate a product based on
the match between product and its country of origin (Roth and Romeo, 1992). For example, a
Russian connection adds a positive connotation to caviar (Camgoz and Ertem, 2008), but a
negative connotation to tractors (Johansson et al., 1994). Consumers in collectivist countries
such as Japan appear to commonly view the home country products more favorably, while
those in individualistic countries like the US tend to evaluate the home products higher only
when they are superior to the competition (Gurhan-Canli and Maheswaran, 2000). In
developing countries, those consumers who admire the lifestyles of more advanced
countries are shown to favor non-local goods (Batra et al., 2000). Effects of COO on
purchase intention have been also studied in combination with variables of price, tradition,
familiarity, risk aversion, brand name, consumer nationality, and product necessity (e.g.
Huddleston et al., 2000; Johansson et al., 1994).
These studies have mostly favored high-involvement, expensive, or technologically
sophisticated product categories such as electronics (Amine and Shin, 2002), computers
(Hong and Wyer, 1989), and cars (Haubl, 1996). Low-involvement categories that attracted
researchers’ attention include coffee (Obermiller and Spangenberg, 1988), bottled water
(Connell, 2006), and chocolate (Camgoz and Ertem, 2008). For example, in the latter study
subjects tasted four identical pieces of chocolate, but expressed differing perceptions of
their taste after the chocolate was described as being made in four different countries.
What is not prominent in the COO stream of research is the investigation of the elements of
the country of origin construct as a means of geographical brand identity. What exactly
makes up this construct? Is the label ‘‘Made in’’ suf?cient as COOstudies commonly intimate
when referring to country of origin? In fact, the existing literature appears to focus on
preexisting stereotypes and perceptions of the countries and not on marketing attempts to
?ll the ‘‘Made in’’ label with a distinctive national identity. A good exception is a case study of
Fiji brand bottled water – a bland commodity that has been strongly linked to an ‘‘exotic’’
place and marketed as ‘‘the taste of paradise’’ (Connell, 2006). Exploring how imaginative
geographies of place are constructed as marketing tools that enable the brand to
differentiate itself, the author looks at the use of carefully selected information on the label, on
the brand’s Website and in the media. While describing claims as grandiose, inaccurate,
cliche´ -ridden, and essentialist, the researcher ?nds ‘‘an enormous amount of symbolic
meaning’’ invested in water in order to produce an idyllic product identity shaped around
place (Connell, 2006, p. 349). This conclusion clearly bridges the theory of COO effect with
that of marketplace mythology.
Marketplace myths are those stories that are highly symbolic, rich in mythic archetypes, and
convey deep meanings (Levi-Strauss, 1963; Thompson, 2004). Oral or written, viewed as
‘‘the culture’s story stock’’ (Stern, 1995), they include consumption-oriented stories in
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different forms: tales passed on by consumers, advertising copies (Johar et al., 2001; Holt,
2004), and narratives on the product packages (Santino, 1996; Kniazeva and Belk, 2007).
Two approaches – structuralism and post-structuralism – peacefully coexist in marketplace
mythology studies. While the ?rst focuses on binary oppositions found in consumption
stories (Levy-Strauss, 1963; Levy, 1981) and archetypal themes of nature’s four seasons and
the human life cycle (Stern, 1995), the second approach concerns the content of mythic
narratives and articulates current mythic themes circulating in the marketplace (Holt, 2004;
Kniazeva and Belk, 2007; Thompson and Tian, 2008). Strong links between myths and
consumer values are found in these studies, and commercial storytelling has been shown to
perform an important brand building function. By re?ecting on current needs and beliefs
(Fournier, 1998; Holt, 2004; Thompson, 2004) the stories invest products with brand
personalities (Aaker, 1997) that are expected to ?t into the trends of the marketplace.
Geography has been modestly present in this stream of research. In addition to the analysis
of Fiji bottled water (Connell, 2006), examples include work on mythologizing place itself,
speci?cally the American West (Penaloza, 2001) and the American South (Thompson and
Tian, 2008). Both geographical locales are highly mythologized: while the ?rst has become a
utopian sanctuary of freedom, abundance, and opportunity, the second has been perceived
as a benighted and backward region. Researchers argue, that ‘‘the gaps and overlaps
between historical accounts, representations in popular cultural products, and popular
understandings of the west comprise a fertile ground for consumer researchers interested in
cultural production in the contemporary marketplace’’ (Penaloza, 2001, p. 372). Thus, our
work should contribute to marketplace mythology studies by addressing its under-explored
domain and focusing on ‘‘country’’ as a prominent mythological construct.
Moreover, we aim at entirely focusing on a single form of narrative – package stories. This
carrier of mythic meaning is also under-researched in both COOand marketplace mythology
studies, compared to the attention given to advertising narratives and oral consumer stories
(Escalas, 1998). Even when the story from the Fiji bottle is included in the analysis of the
phenomenal success of its brand building, the story is only explored brie?y. At the same
time, the role of packaging in mythologizing the brand has been evident since the
seventeenth century when packaged patent medicines were ?rst introduced in London. In
fact, one of such packages emphasized the country of origin by narrating on the package
that the physician had learned of this remedy in Italy (Hine, 1995).
The packaging rhetoric is explored in detail in a recent study that focused on food packages
claiming the ‘‘natural’’ origin of their products (Kniazeva and Belk, 2007). Treating packaging
narratives as cultural productions, the authors show how ordinary staple foods are given
grand symbolic meaning. They propose the mechanism of a mythologizing movement that
consists of three major elements: employing narrative structures, ?lling them with mythic
archetypes, and constructing messages full of deep meaning. Skillfully following these
steps, marketers have been collectively creating a grand postmodern myth of a powerful
consumer, according to the article. This conceptual framework gives a directional foundation
for our research.
Method and design
The unit of analysis in this qualitative study is the narrative found on food packages claiming
an Italian connection. The decision to focus on food and not, for example, on tractors, was
governed by the nature of food as a product category. Food is a commodity used by all
humans, and not by a speci?c group of consumers. Therefore, decisions to buy foodstuffs
are made on a regular basis. Compared to heavily rationalized decisions to buy, for example,
a car, or a tractor, they are generally believed to be low-involvement decisions, though they
can also be framed by strong political agendas (Thompson and Coskuner-Balli, 2007) as
when consumers are willing to support local farmers or have health concerns (Mazis and
Raymond, 1997).
The second reason for this product category choice is food’s powerful cultural connotations
(Meigs, 1997). Performing as cultural agents, food items convey values, beliefs, histories,
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and traditions. Moreover, ‘‘embedded within the hamburger or ?zzy drink are images of
identity waiting to be consumed’’ (James, 1996, p. 82), including those of the countries they
represent (Brownlie et al., 2005).
Finally, food easily travels across borders, and while doing so, food carries cultural
uniqueness and seems to resist global standardization. ‘‘Examined in the context of
globalization, food does not really agree with one of the major postulates of globalization:
sameness,’’ according to Kniazeva et al. (2007). Quoting one of their respondents, whose
favorite places to go at a supermarket are the ‘‘aisles that are not American,’’ they show how
foodstuffs let consumers travel the world:
Ninety percent of the time, I go there ?rst [. . .] I’ll pick up the bottle and read the label and I’ll see
what’s in it and I think about what it could possibly taste like and it will say what they suggest to
serve it with or whatever.
And because food products ‘‘are increasingly marketed by place’’ (Connell, 2006, p. 342),
local grocery stores become important vehicles of geography induced images.
We purposely focus on food products claiming Italian origin and sold in the US. The Italian
connotation translates into a positive perceived value of products in the country that
received most of Italy’s overall trade exports in 2005, according to Economist Intelligence
Unit. The subject in the above mentioned study ?nds Italian food to be ‘‘the most enjoyable
food to make’’ (Kniazeva et al., 2007). Italian cuisine is favored for its pizza, pasta, cheeses,
olive oils, vinegar, wines, and biscuits, and we intend to show how marketers attempt to
maintain and/or extend this favorable image through commercial story telling. This task
poses a great challenge given the ‘‘giddying’’ variety of Italian food that boasts 142 different
labels just for those types of pasta that begin with C and which are formally presented in a
‘‘World Directory of Pasta Shapes and Names’’ compiled by Italian manufacturers:
Italians have made the task even tougher by disseminating endless myths and misconceptions.
Everywhere one goes, the people in one small town will swear blind that their salami, their cheese,
their nougat is a distinct and altogether more delicious creation than the identical version
available across the valley (Dickie, 2007).
Unlike works that focus on cookbooks as cultural productions (Brownlie et al., 2005) and
academic and popular writing about food (James, 1996) that explore the ways in which food
is variously imaged, we are turning our attention to the narratives on the packages.
Our data were collected in the US and include 30 foodstuff items bought at grocery stores,
with one item ordered online. The set represents a collection that can easily be found in the
kitchen of a typical US household. The purpose was to ‘‘effortlessly’’ buy ordinary items, and
the major discriminating criteria was the presence of at least one claimabout an Italian origin
(i.e. ‘‘Made in Italy,’’ ‘‘Italian product,’’ or ‘‘Product of Italy’’) in addition to the Italy-related
story presented on the box, bottle, can, bag, or a carton. The products that contained mere
nutritional information or instructions for use did not qualify for the study. Chocolate candy,
cake, jam, bottled water, coffee, olive oil; balsamic vinegar, pasta, and biscuits make up the
range of product categories (see Table I).
Data analysis employed procedures for developing grounded theory as the most relevant
approach to meet our exploratory objective and to look for various themes (Strauss and
Corbin, 1998). We aimed at uncovering the major properties of the country of origin
construct and their dimensions in order to arrive at an understanding of the process of
mythologizing a country. After the initial close reading of the package narratives, we saw
repetitions in the communicated themes which let us center our in-depth analysis on ten
representative narratives.
Further, when references, for example, to technology became evident in the stories, we
distinguished technology as one of the properties of the COO construct. Looking at its
dimensions, we performed an open and axial coding. This provided us with the following
binary oppositions: fake – authentic, modern – traditional, made – created, careless –
painstaking, fast – slow, with chemicals and pesticides – without chemicals and pesticides,
machine-made – hand-made, generic – special, impersonal – personal. We then
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distinguished those descriptors that were directly utilized or implied in the package
narratives in relation to technology and the processes used to make the analyzed food items.
The set of these descriptors let us see the emphasis on authenticity.
We performed the same analysis and coding for each of the four major properties that we
saw in our data. This approach allowed us to trace connections between the properties and
to develop the conceptual framework titled ‘‘Mythologizing the country.’’ The following
chapters present our ?ndings in detail and articulate those components of country of origin
construct that mythologize a country and are intended to result in consumer geographic
imagination.
Data analysis
The construct of country of origin reveals four major properties in our data: geography,
people, time, and technology. These geographical, social, temporal, and technological
factors become crucial elements of exclusivity – a major theme penetrating stories on the
packages of food products claiming an Italian connection.
Property 1 – inspiring geography
Narratives that make reference to speci?c regions in Italy provide various degrees of detail –
fromthe mere mention of a geographical place – other than Italy itself – to poetically framing
dry geographical descriptions. When names of geographical features are just dropped, they
function as a background for grand events connected to the product in the package. For
example, Milan is presented as a place where many years ago a love story unfolded. This is
where a young nobleman fell in love with a baker’s daughter and created a sweet cake to
impress her father. The cake was so good, that its reputation soon traveled over the Alps to
Sicily – two more regional markers used in the narrative of the Traditional Italian Cake
Panettone.
When geography of region is presented in some detail, different geographical elements are
used to amplify the Italian connection to the product. ‘‘Campo?lone is a small hilltown in the
Table I Products claiming an Italian connection
Product
category Brand name
Time referred to in the
narrative
Geographic locale referred to
in the narrative Invested personality
Biscuit Specialita Regionali Italiane
Biscotti Chiostro Di Saronno
1700 Saronno, Lombardy, Tuscany,
Piedmont, Liguria
Family
Biscuit Amaretti Soft 18th century Saronno Family
Candy Baci Nearly a century ago Italy Accomplished confectioner;
heir to Perugina
Cake Panettone The 1400s Milan; Alps Mountains; Sicily Young nobleman; baker’s
daughter Tony; baker
Pasta La Campo?lone Egg Pasta Over 400 years ago;
1560; 1912
Campo?lone in the central
Italian province of Ascoli
Piceno, overlooking the
Adriatic sea
Grandmother Adorna
Albanesi; grandfather; pasta
makers
Jam Prickly Pear Jam Castelbuono in the province of
Palermo; Sicily
The Fiasconaro Brothers
Bottled
water
Italian Sparkling Mineral Water Tuscan Appennine Mountains
Coffee Antico Caffe Greco Over two centuries
back
Rome, 86 via Condotti Goethe; Rossini;
Mendelssohn; Berlioz
Olive oil Mama Mucci’s Extra Virgin Olive
Oil
For over 2,000 years;
century old
Area between the
Mediterranean Sea and the
Mountains of the Montelongo
(Molise) region
Balsamic
vinegar
Mama Mucci’s Authentic Italian
Balsamic Vinegar
15th century Italy
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central Italian province of Ascoli Piceno, overlooking the Adriatic Sea. There, for over 400
years, artisan pasta makers have produced unique homemade pasta called
‘Maccheroncini.’’’ So begins the narrative on the La Campo?lone Egg Pasta package.
This story lets the reader envision a cute little town with a refreshing sea breeze that
prompted a creative approach to pasta making.
‘‘Sicily’s sun’’ is a selling motive in the narrative accompanying a glass jar of Prickly Pear jam.
‘‘Sicily’s sun and ?avors have been captured for you,’’ claims the product ‘‘Bottega Siciliana
del Gusto’’ created by the Fiasconaro brothers. The brothers, the reader learns, were from
Castelbuono in the Province of Palermo, and they were inspired by this region when they
created their jam. Similarly, the Tuscan Appennine Mountains are a geological marker for a
bottled water brand. According to the narrative, the ‘‘precious minerals and channels’’ of
these mountains make the water ‘‘truly unique and unmistakable.’’ The water is
anthropomorphized in the short passage describing its path to the bottle: ‘‘It comes to
light after a relentless journey through precious minerals and channels in the Tuscan
Appennine Mountains.’’
The signi?cance of geography is even more pronounced in the narrative placed on the glass
bottle of Mama Mucci’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil: ‘‘Between the Mediterranean Sea and the
Mountains of the Montelongo (Molise) region lies an area with the rich, fertile soil, ideal
climate and altitude necessary to grow the perfect olive.’’ The geological details of soil,
climate and altitude are presented as intrinsic elements of the ?nal product. The bottle is
metaphorically said to offer ‘‘fragrant characteristics of the region,’’ and not simply extra
virgin olive oil.
In a similar metaphorical manner, the box of biscuits Specialita Regionali Italiane Biscotti
pompously boasts ‘‘to represent to the world’’ some of the ‘‘wonderful Italian regions.’’ The
regions are listed in the narrative, with each region being symbolized by different type of the
company’s products: ‘‘Lombardy (Amaretti crunchy and soft), Tuscany (Cantuccini classic
and chocolate), Piedmont (Baci) and Liguria (Canestrelli).’’ Moreover, the geographical
poetry includes one more signi?cant location – that of the center of the town of Saronno. The
center is said to house the Cloister which has ‘‘always’’ been the residence of the founding
family. The package even has a picture of the residence and indirectly invites the consumer
on a vicarious travel experience.
As part of the experience of ‘‘?ne Italian coffee,’’ the package of Antico Cafe´ Greco
welcomes the coffee drinker to Rome, providing a speci?c address. At 86 via Condotti,
promises the narrative, visitors will ?nd themselves at one of the oldest coffeehouses of
Rome – with ‘‘elegant rooms ?lled with artistic collections that tell us of its rich, historic past.’’
In this paragraph, mere geography harmoniously co-exists with Italian history.
Close reading of ten food product narratives reveals thirteen geographic locales. Geological
elements utilized in the package stories include names of mountains, seas, provinces,
regions, towns, and speci?c addresses. The sun, groundwater, minerals, soil, climate, hills,
altitude and mountain channels are present in these stories not as anonymous geographic
descriptors but as important literary details whose function is to set up a story background
by creating a sense of geographic exclusivity. Geography is signi?cant in these stories for
the inspiration created in those who, in turn, give birth to the products that cross oceans and
travel the world.
Property 2 – passionate people
Analysis of characters populating the packaging narratives presents a colorful collection of
personalities, all with a strong Italian connection. Their description is a teasing combination
of factual information and missing details which give supposedly real people an attractive
legendary ?avor. Among them there are composers, a writer, a grandmother, brothers, a
young nobleman, and an accomplished confectioner. Some of them have names, others do
not.
‘‘One of Perugina’s accomplished confectioners’’ is the major hero in the narrative
accompanying the box of Baci chocolate candies. No name, just her culinary skills
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(‘‘accomplished’’) introduce the woman who fell in love with the heir to Perugina, an old
Italian company. In a world without telephones and computers, she came up with her own
way to express love: the woman created chocolate candies that she would wrap in secret
notes and send to the heir. Why ‘‘secret’’? Was her social status too low? Did the heir return
her love? The readers are left to ?nish the story, to ?ll the story in with desirable details. He
was young – that’s the only descriptor given about the heir. The narrative implies a dramatic
course of events – ‘‘wonderful and often tumultuous course of love.’’ Without reporting the
happy ending, the ?nal message is reassuring: in this unstable ever-changing world
romance can last forever, or this is what the company claims to know. The candies in this
story symbolize love: ‘‘Baci, the Passion of Italy. It all began with a kiss [. . .] In Italian, Baci
(ba-chee) means ‘kisses.’ And while chocolate says romance in any language, the Baci
chocolate kiss personi?es romance.’’
A ‘‘[y]oung nobleman in Milan’’ – the one who had to win the heart of the baker to get the
hand of his daughter – remains nameless as well. Nor is much said about his beloved.
Her name was Toni. The reader learns this fact only because the cake is said to be
named after her – ‘‘Pan de Toni’’ – which explains its current name Panettone. How did
she look? Was she beautiful? Did they marry? ‘‘No one knows whether the man was
successful in his romantic quest,’’ says the narrative. The lack of details turns the story
into a mystery, making the story both a real account of historical events and a folk story.
What remains inherently real is the ‘‘fruit of labor of love’’ that has become ‘‘the cake of all
Italians.’’
A different kind of love is claimed to be in the La Campo?lone Egg Pasta. It was Adorna
Albanesi, the grandmother of the current pasta makers, who started the ‘‘la Campo?lone’’
company in 1912 and used a traditional, regional pasta-making technique that became
famous throughout Italy. Adorna was evidently an entrepreneurial woman, as at ?rst she
owned a local trattoria. Her trattoria is described as popular, and a reader can imagine a
crowded joyful place that inspired Adorna to focus on making pasta. Along with her
husband, she put a lot of ‘‘love and attention’’ into her pasta-making business, and passed
on this approach to her grandchildren who now make ‘‘traditional artisan pasta.’’ Thus, the
connection to a grandmother symbolically implies tradition.
Behind the Specialita Regionali Italiane Biscotti is ‘‘the family.’’ ‘‘Our family is one of the
oldest manufacturers of biscuits and liqueurs in Italy. Based in Saronno and known for the
famous Amaretti since 1700, the family is committed to offering a wide variety of high quality
biscuits to our customers.’’ The ‘‘oldest manufacturers of biscuits in Italy’’ are now gone, but
their commitment remains alive with their descendants, who still live in their ancestors’
residence. This residence houses ‘‘a very famous historical archive’’ with all its family recipes
and secrets. Personi?cation is historically framed in this passage.
The German writer Goethe and European composers Rossini, Mendelssohn and Berlioz
did not create any cakes or candies. Neither did they make pasta or biscuits. However,
having left to the world literary and musical masterpieces, these world-famous characters
are now endorsing the product which they are said to have loved passionately – coffee.
Being patrons of the Antico Caffe Greco coffeehouse in Rome, these Europeans sipped
coffee in a symbolic action of expressing their personal freedoms, the coffee package
tells us. Did they ponder their future masterpieces over cups of coffee? The narrative of
the Antico Caffe Greco coffee beans reminds the reader of the rebellious nature of these
people of art, for whom coffee became ‘‘inspiration for a new concept in ‘‘individual
liberties.’’
Purposely personifying food products by populating themwith real or not-so-real people, the
narratives give the goods the symbolic power to solve human problems, such as winning
over one’s love or expressing a need for freedom. In addition, all the characters, with names
or without them, appear to have one thing in common – a characteristically Italian passion
that romanticizes their quests in business, love, and art. In turn, the created or consumed
products – chocolate kisses, cakes laden with raisins, artisanal pasta, and de?ant coffee –
become symbolic creations of passion as well.
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Property 3 – historical time
The property of time is strongly at play in the short narratives that attempt to intensify the
Italian association of the products by distancing them in time from the present. Time is alive
in the narratives that venerate the old and glamorize the past. Numbers are generously used
here: ‘‘over 400 years ago’’, ‘‘since 1700,’’ ‘‘in 1400s,’’ ‘‘over two thousand years.’’ They are
not faceless symbols; numbers talk symbolically on the packages by adding historical
signi?cance to the otherwise insigni?cant past. The count often goes by centuries, as
‘‘years’’ do not always manage to convey the magnitude of events: ‘‘nearly a century ago,’’
‘‘over two centuries back,’’ ‘‘traced back to the rituals of the ?fteenth century.’’ Even olive
trees are depicted as a century old. The vocabulary used is historical: it includes ‘‘archives,’’
‘‘rituals,’’ ‘‘golden age,’’ ‘‘?rst cold press.’’ Seemingly exact and approximate at the same
time, the indicated time provides both some factual evidence and legendary ?avor. The
products contained in the boxes and bottles – as mundane and ordinary as they may
appear at ?rst sight – are made out to be rooted not just in the past, but in history.
Reading these food package narratives provides a solid historical account of former beliefs
in the curative properties of products and of affairs of both, grandiose and lesser
signi?cances. They present the reader with a curious lesson in history. The process that is
used to make Mama Mucci’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil ‘‘has been practiced for over 2,000 years’’
and is termed the ‘‘First Cold Press.’’ The same brand elevates the historical importance of
its balsamic vinegar by taking the reader to the ?fteenth century, when ‘‘Balsamico’’ was
thought to be a healing potion. The romantic battle for the baker’s daughter that resulted in
the birth of the Panettone cake took place in the 1400s. Baci’s saga ‘‘all began with a kiss’’
nearly a century ago when a confectioner sent chocolate candies with secret love notes to
the Perugina heir.
The artisan pasta makers of Campo?lone started making their famous pasta over 400 years
ago; the family of biscuit makers has been ‘‘known for the famous Amaretti since 1700.’’ And
over two centuries back, the coffeehouse in Rome, poetically described on the package of
Antico Caffe Greco coffee, attracted creative German, French and Italian minds who would
later create great dramas and write inspired and passionate music ‘‘for a golden age.’’
Perfect Italian biscuits and the best vinegars owe their exceptionality to the ‘‘centuries-old
Italian archives’’ which act as faithful keepers of gastronomical secrets. The company’s
biscuits are said to be special, because ‘‘all traditions are preserved in a very famous
historical archive.’’ Family recipes are claimed to have traveled down through the years from
generation to generation. These recipes metaphorically bridge the past with the present.
Baci chocolate kisses, now wrapped in love notes written in four languages, epitomize as
much romance as they did a century ago. Though tailored to the current demands, it is
implied that the current products remain the same. Old is good when old is history, is the
message communicated in the narratives glamorizing the Italian past for the bene?t of
biscuits and jams in the present. Thus, it is not the age of the product, but historical distance
in time that the numbers in the narratives symbolize.
Property 4 – authentic technology
The description of techniques used to make food products appears as poetry of production.
This seemingly dry property generates the highest number of emotionally-charged
dimensions. Juxtaposition of modern and traditional methods, painstaking and careless
processes, mass-produced and hand-nurtured products glori?es the authentic approach.
Ingredients boast of exclusivity: vinegars are made fromthe ?nest trebbiano grapes, olive oil
is pressed from the estate olives, and only Sicilian fruit is used for jam. A Campo?lone Egg
Pasta making technique is narrated as follows:
Our artisan pasta is produced from the highest quality ingredients: pure durum wheat semolina
and very fresh eggs without the addition of any water. In keeping with the traditional process, the
dough is rolled out especially thin and then allowed to dry slowly and gradually at just slightly
higher than room temperature.
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The narrative utilizes additional adverbs to dramatize the literary depiction of the
technological process: the eggs are very fresh, the dough is especially thin, and the
temperature is slightly higher.
Overall, the stories metaphorically present an impressive triumph of authenticity. The
processes are uniformly ‘‘painstaking’’ and meticulous: hazelnuts for Baci candies are
‘‘?nely chopped,’’ the grapes for Mama Mucci’s vinegar are ‘‘crushed gently.’’ The
techniques celebrate manual labor by making ‘‘hand-made’’ a sign of Italian resistance to
the dominance of mass production. In the idyllic world portrayed in the narratives, olives are
‘‘hand picked,’’ and the jar of jam boasts ‘‘a completely hand-made production.’’ No room
exists for chemicals, pesticides or preservatives in this world that favors a traditional slow
pace: the liquid for vinegar is stored ‘‘at least four years in uncorked oak casks,’’ olives are
‘‘pressed within hours’’ and not minutes, and pasta dough is allowed to dry ‘‘slowly and
gradually.’’
The processes are reportedly exact recreations of those that originated centuries ago.
Artisan pasta makers still use a special technique without water, and ‘‘large stone wheels’’
press olives which lets the olive oil makers describe their production as genuine preparation
‘‘assuring that you hold in your hand an oil of uncompromised quality, unspoiled and
authentic.’’ In addition, not only can the production can be easily visualized through the
impressive account of details, but the voices of the makers and producers resonate
powerfully in the narratives, which moves them away from impersonal generic depictions.
‘‘Today we produce our Maccheroncini with the same love and attention that our
grandparents used years ago,’’ La Campo?lone pasta makers promise. ‘‘Buon Appetito!’’
‘‘La Dolce Vita!’’ ‘‘From Italy to Your Table!’’ – such are the happy endings offered by the
packages of products claiming an Italian connection.
As a result, food products metaphorically become ‘‘a celebration for the palate’’ and ‘‘fruits
of labor of love.’’ The foods are symbolically presented as fragile pieces of gastronomic art:
pasta is ‘‘deliciously light,’’ olive oil and cakes are ‘‘delicate,’’ biscuits and coffee are ‘‘?ne,’’
bread is ‘‘subtly’’ sweet. Vinegar signi?es harmony by supposedly achieving a ‘‘wonderful
sweet-and-sour balance.’’ Narratives generously promise to deliver sensual experiences:
Italian Mineral Water is said to give ‘‘the palate a mildly sharp sensation.’’ ‘‘A smooth
pleasant aroma with dark caramel sweetness’’ highlights Antico Caffe Greco coffee. The
‘‘silky’’ chocolate Baci candies hint at ‘‘a rich, sensual delight.’’
The shape of these products is also distinctive: cake looks like a ‘‘unique dome,’’ and pasta
promises ‘‘very thin strips’’ that keep their shape and ?avor after cooking.’’ ‘‘Superior,’’
‘‘uncompromised,’’ ‘‘unspoiled,’’ ‘‘high quality,’’ ‘‘truly unique’’ and ‘‘unmistakable’’ – those
are the adjectives meant to communicate authenticity. The country connection is strong and
direct in this narration on the packages: Prickly Pear symbolizes ‘‘unmistakably Sicilian
taste,’’ Specialita Regionali Italiane Biscotti claimto be the ‘‘best known Italian biscuits,’’ and
the ‘‘cake of all Italians’’ Panettone invites consumers to share ‘‘the traditional taste of rustic
Italy.’’
Discussion: familiarity plus mystique
Commercial narratives, although constrained by the space available on boxes and bottles of
food products, perform a big mythological function: they create imaginative elements of a
country and plant them into ordinary staple goods as if providing the blocks for building an
image of the country. Based on our analysis, we propose a conceptual framework that
delineates the mythological creation of country of origin construct. The country is
mythologized by making use of heroes, plots and con?icts, a process that is characteristic of
myths, which favor symbol-?lled archetypes carrying value-laden messages (Kniazeva and
Belk, 2007).
Four properties of the COO construct uncovered in out study correlate to the where, who,
when and how elements of mythological narration. Combined together, they magnify
geographic, social, temporal, and technological exclusivity adding up to the perceived
exclusivity of a product (see Figure 1). The ?rst property, geography, while articulating its
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dimension of distinctiveness, sets up a background for an imaginative exercise by the
consumer. The social property personi?es the background through the inclusion of with
passionate characters. The time property adds historical ?avor by stressing the dimension of
the past. Finally, the property of technology, glamorizing the process of production through
its authentic nature, equips the readers of the narrative with a rich set of elements needed to
prompt their geographic imagination. These claims to authenticity parallel ones commonly
found in contemporary Western food writing and journalism that ?nd marks of authenticity in
diversity, in the small scale, and in local artisanal modes of production (James, 1996).
While attempting to engage readers in this imaginative exercise, the narratives appear to
carefully balance factual information with legendary elements. Details provide the reader
with some geographical knowledge and add to what was termed ‘‘the comfort of familiarity’’
in earlier studies of COO effect which stressed the importance of creating a ‘‘brand
franchise’’ until the customers experience such comfort (Johansson et al., 1994).
Key elements left out ?ll the narrative with some mystique and encourage creative
visualization. Such balance leaves enough room for geographic imagination. For example,
the real geographical place (Milan) and time (in the 1400s) of the event add credibility to the
story about the man who created a delicious cake to impress the father of his loved one. The
statement that ‘‘nobody knows’’ if the young man succeeded in his quest adds mystery. In a
similar manner, the narrative about one of the oldest coffeehouses in Rome invites the
consumer to wind through its ‘‘elegant rooms ?lled with artistic collections.’’ While providing
the address of the coffeehouse, the story does not give any details on what makes the rooms
elegant or what collections they house. Thus, the imaginative mind of the reader comes into
play to ?ll in the blanks. Here, we see some parallels with ‘‘the blend of fantasy and reality’’
that has been found in marketing of the US west: ‘‘Consumption of the Old West literally in
land and minerals, and ?guratively in popular cultural products, is important in fueling the
blend of fantasy and reality that remains today’’ (Penaloza, 2001, p. 372).
As a result, a perceived image of a country can be ?exible enough to ?t with the values of the
reader. Thus, linking particular foodstuffs to particular geographic locales, embodied by
sets of cultural elements, narratives provide what can be termed ‘‘a ?exible symbolic vehicle
for self-identity’’ (James, 1996, p. 80). This ?exible outcome obtains particular importance in
the global marketing of Western products that is often criticized for spreading materialist and
decadent Western values across cultures (Classen and Howes, 1996). In addition, the
values communicated in the analyzed narratives clearly utilize mythological structures that
Figure 1 Mythologizing the country
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capitalize on cross-cultural commonalities. The portrayed heroes are universal archetypes of
family members; the plots revolve around the theme of love; the values glorify hard work,
creativity and preservation of strong communal ties. The con?icts signify the idea of power
and imply the overcoming social barriers of inequality, and they juxtapose nature with the
automated culture of modern production. According to the traditional mythic narration,
natural elements are anthropomorphized: underground waters undertake ‘‘a relentless
journey,’’ the sun is ‘‘captured,’’ products are ‘‘born,’’ chocolates ‘‘talk,’’ the taste is
‘‘sealed,’’ the biscuits ‘‘sit side by side.’’
Such mythological poetry skillfully creates a combined image of an idyllic country with
imaginative elements of romance and passion, creativity and inspiration, authenticity and
history, hard work and beautiful geography. How can something coming from this country
not be delicious? Only the exceptional, extraordinary, and memorable can originate in such a
place. The exaggerated, global celebration claimed on the package of Panettone cake
seems highly believable: ‘‘Today, people around the world mark holidays, special occasions
and everyday gatherings with this legendary dessert.’’
Conclusion
Our research supports claims made in previous studies on the function of food as an
important part of the global village’s patchwork culture. By consuming Chinese, Indian and
Italian foods, the British, for example, embrace ‘‘a way of living a local life with and through
global imagery’’ (James, 1996). These consumption practices let consumers experience the
world vicariously: ‘‘By voluntary tasting unfamiliar foods that are consumed on a daily basis
by others, they expand their personal worlds’’ (Kniazeva et al., 2007). Narratives that
marketers place on food packages to emphasize connections to particular countries, help
this expansion occur by adding familiar and mystic elements to particular cultures. Dressing
a ‘‘naked’’ biscuit in a package that offers a story adds character to the product and prompts
the consumer’s geographic imagination. In fact, the packaging transformed an ordinary
biscuit ‘‘into a position of importance on the tables of the Victorian diner’’ (Sacharow, 1982).
The importance of COO effects on consumer decision making is expected to become even
stronger with current globalization trends that increasingly move products across countries
and force marketers to engage in a battle to differentiate their brands – in many cases by
capitalizing on the origin of products.
We now envision several directions for future research. First, the interpretation of the
narratives by the consumers of food products claiming an Italian connection will allow
exploring how the mythic structures employed by marketers are read by the intended
readers. Second, the analysis of illustrations on the packages will demonstrate the power of
visual images in creating a country of origin effect. Finally, cross-cultural reading of
narratives – those that market differing countries – will uncover additional properties of the
COO construct. Moving in these directions will minimize the limitations of the present study
and add to the understanding of how geography ceases being a mere informational ‘‘Made
in’’ statement and is transformed into a powerful cultural marker, full of symbolically framed
meaning. From anonymous geographic enigma to distinctive geographic image is a road
worth exploring by marketers.
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About the author
Maria Kniazeva is an Associate Professor of Marketing at The University of San Diego. She
earned her PhD in Management with specialization in marketing from the University of
California, Irvine, and her Master’s in Journalism from Leningrad (St Petersburg, Russia)
State University. An ethnic Russian, she used to live in Estonia where she worked as an
executive editor of a newspaper and a freelance business consultant to foreign investors.
Maria Kniazeva can be contacted at:[email protected]
VOL. 5 NO. 4 2011
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH
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This article has been cited by:
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