Brand Tourists: How Non–Core Users Enhance the Brand Image by Eliciting Pride

This research examines how core consumers of selective brands react when non–core users obtain access to the brand. Contrary to the view that non–core users and downward brand extensions pose a threat to the brand, this work in-vestigates the conditions under which these non–core users enhance rather than dilute the brand image. A distinction between two types of non–core users based on how they are perceived by current users of core products is introduced: “brand immigrants ” who claim to be part of the in-group of core users of the brand and “brand tourists ” who do not claim any membership status to the brand community. A series of studies show that core consumers respond positively to non–core users when they are perceived as brand tourists. The brand tourism effect is mediated by core users ’ pride and moderated by brand patriotism and selectiveness of the brand. There is an inherent trade-off in managing symbolic andexclusive brands. Brand managers need to generate growth by extending the customer base to new segments and new markets; yet, this increased popularity and prev-alence can paradoxically hurt the brand and threaten its symbolic value. For instance, the popularity of Tiffany’s highly profitable and fast-growing line of cheaper silver jewelry threatened to alienate the brand’s older and wealth-ier clients and to damage its reputation for luxury. Burberry displayed its iconic tan plaid on multiple products and brand extensions and struggled with the resulting overexposure (Byron 2007). Other notorious examples of brands that stumbled while trying to satisfy both investors ’ clamor for sales growth and customers ’ demand for exclusivity include Pierre Cardin, which became too common for many high-fashion customers (Andrews 2004), and Gucci, whose prod-Silvia Bellezza