Brands as a Mean of Consumer Self-expression and Desired Personal Lifestyle

Lifestyle has a great impact on consumer behaviour and brand preferences. Very often, consumers tend to choose brands that are considered “appropriate” for their self-image. Accordingly, companies will try to position their brands in order to fit into consumers’ lifestyle. In addition to expressing their identity through the everyday choices they make, consumers will often seek new ways in which they can express their personal identity. As a result, consumers can use brands as a relevant mean of self- expression and also as a lifestyle “beacon”. The purpose of this article is to examine the role of brands in this circumstances and to highlight the possible implications. Using two different experiments, the authors provide strong evidence that customers rely on brands with a desirable brand identity to express their own identity and they tend to prefer brands that are convergent with their identity as the primary mean of expressing an unique image about their personal lifestyle. This article also provides solid evidence that brands can be used as valid tools for status signalling in everyday circumstances.