Brands, pseudo-brands, and quasi-brands in the multi-level macroecosystem of nation branding

Goal: to apply an integral approach to building a model of a multi-level macroecosystem of nation branding based on: analyzing of options for representing the brand phenomenon in the context of the modern international division of labor; applying the brand concept behind the borders of markets for goods/services and relationships between their producers, sellers and consumers. Methodology: the theoretical research was carried out on the basis of a semantic-conceptual analysis of publications relevant to the purposes of the article concerning issues of brand representation, the country-of-origin effect, pseudo-foreign brands and the ecosystem approach in economics. Findings: three aggregated categories of brands were identified, their definitions were developed and relevant examples in various areas of the country’s socio-economic life were considered, as well as the feasibility of an ecosystem approach to country branding was substantiated. Originality and contribution: for the first time, along with the category of true brands of goods/services and corporations, quasi-brands and pseudo-brands are comprehensively considered (with special attention paid to the state and prospects of pseudo-foreign branding in Russia); in addition, an original model of a multi-level macro-ecosystem of country branding and a corresponding definition of the latter are proposed. Besides, the identification of complex connections between brands of these three categories made it possible to propose the author’s model of a centralized multilevel macroecosystem of nation branding and an original definition of the latter.