Introducing place branding as valuation: The case of Limerick’s bid to become European Capital of Culture

This paper examines how valuation practices shape place branding through the case of a city bidding to become European Capital of Culture (ECoC). While place branding research has emphasised stakeholder involvement and identity construction, less attention has been paid to how valuation practices shape what is considered valuable in branding processes. Drawing on valuation studies and orders of worth, we analyse how valuation devices such as bid books, scoring systems, and consultations mediate competing value claims during the bidding process. We introduce the concept of branding as valuation to show how place brands emerge through the negotiation and operationalisation of competing orders of worth within valuation assemblages. The study contributes to marketing theory by conceptualising branding as a constitutive valuation process and by showing how competitions function as valuation assemblages that organise and stabilise place brand value.