Analyzing Brand Equity: Zara and Gucci with Recommendations

This essay provides a comprehensive analysis of brand equity, focusing on the comparison of Zara and Gucci within the fashion industry. The essay begins with an introduction to brand management and the chosen brands, followed by a literature review defining brand equity, its significance, and various methods for its calculation, with a specific emphasis on the customer-based brand equity (CBBE) model. The core of the essay involves analyzing the brand equity of Zara and Gucci individually using the Keller CBBE model, examining factors such as brand salience, performance, imagery, judgments, feelings, and resonance for each brand. The analysis includes a comparison and contrast of the two brands, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses. Finally, the essay concludes with recommendations for how both Zara and Gucci can enhance their brand equity based on the findings of the analysis. The essay incorporates academic sources and aims to provide a detailed understanding of brand management principles.

Running head: BRAND MANAGEMENT
Brand Management
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author note

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Introduction
Brand management refers to analysis along with the planning that helps a brand in
making an impression on the market. Brand management requires that a company develops
good relationship with that of the target market. The different elements in relation to brand
management are product, price along with the packaging of the product. Zara is the name of a
retailer pertaining to clothing along with accessories which is based within Galicia. Zara is
the name of largest apparel retailer within the world (Zara.com 2019). Gucci refers to luxury
brand based in Italy pertaining to fashion along with the leather goods. Gucci has directly
operated stores that helps the company in selling the premium products of the company
(Gucci.com 2019). The primary purpose of this essay is to throw light on the concept and the
significance in relation to brand equity. The essay also throws light on the various ways that
can be used for the calculation of brand equity. The essay also discusses about Keller CBBE
model and the brand equity of Zara along with Gucci in relation to the Keller CBBE model. It
talks about the identification of the brands pertaining to that of Keller pyramid model and
provides recommendations that can help in enhancing the brand equity of the companies.
Brand equity
Brand equity refers to additional value that a product receives on account of the fact
that it is popular among the people. It is indicative of difference in the pricing which is paid
by a customer in the event of buying a product that is recognized over that of generic version
of that of same product. According to Rosenbaum-Elliott, Percy and Pervan (2015), brand
equity paves the path for the competitive advantage that helps in driving higher sales of a
brand. A company can differentiate itself from the other competitors in the event of having
the element of brand equity. It has been argued by Heding, Knudtzen and Bjerre (2015), that
the brand equity can be achieved in the event of a company having superior product along

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with excellent customer service. The marketing campaign that is employed by a company can
help a brand in attaining brand equity. The establishment of brand equity can help a company
in getting various kinds of advantages. It can help a company in enjoying higher amount of
revenue because the customers would be willing to pay more for the product of a company as
compared to the others that can help a company in having a consumer base that is large.
According to Atwal and Williams (2017), that the companies that have strong branding can
expand into various kinds of the product lines as customer trust in relation to a brand will
make the customers buy the new products that are created by the company. It helps in
increasing the sales along with the revenues of a company and it also lowers the costs for a
company. It has been found that the marketing cost of that of the recognized brands are low
as there exist many customers who know regarding companies. Brand equity can be said to
be important as it augments the brand awareness of a company (Jugenheimer, Sheehan and
Kelley 2015). The significance of the concept of brand equity lie owing to the fact that it
helps a company in reaching the marketing goals that can help a company in earning a large
amount of revenue.
Calculation of Brand equity
The brand equity of a company can be calculated with the help of brand awareness.
The customer knowledge in relation to the products along with the services can help in the
measurement of brand equity. According to Zenker and Braun (2017), the surveys along with
the focus groups can serve as important methods that can help in the measurement of brand
equity. The preference of the consumer acts as powerful factor that helps the customers in
making the purchase decisions. It has been argued by Burmann et al. (2017), that the
customer based model in relation to the brand equity helps in bringing out the attitude of the
customer in relation to a brand that can account for the success of a brand. It is designed in
the form of a pyramid that helps in laying foundation that helps in the creation of positive

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attitude pertaining to a brand. It helps in working on the attitudes along with the loyalties of
the consumers. The brand equity that is on the basis of customer helps in understanding the
wants along with the needs of the consumer. Brand can be said to belong to the consumers
and the relationship of customers with brand is constituted on the basis of brand equity.
Customer-based brand equity (CBBE) model incorporates the theoretical advances that helps
in influencing the behaviour of the consumers. It helps in the devising of the campaigns that
helps in the marketing of the products and the services of a company.
Keller CBBE model
According to Homburg, Jozić and Kuehnl (2017), the Keller model helps in knowing
about the customers feel about a product and it helps in the building up of the right kind of
experiences in relation to a corporate brand. It helps the customers in having the positive
thoughts, beliefs along with the opinions in relation to a brand. The brand equity model of
Keller lays stress on the five aspects: resonance, feelings, judgements, imagery, salience
along with performance. Brand salience helps in making a brand stand out from that of the
others so that it can be recognized by the customer. It can help in understanding the decision
making process of the customer which proves to be useful in classification of a product. The
factor of “performance” helps in understanding whether the product meets the needs of the
customer that comprises of five features: primary features, durability, effectiveness of
service, design along with the pricing. “Imagery” is indicative of whether the brand is able to
meet the needs of the customer on the basis of the social and the psychological level. It has
been argued by McColl-Kennedy et al. (2015) that the judgements that the customers make
are on the basis of the quality of the products that can make the customers judge the
credibility in relation to the products. The brand “resonance” occupies the top position in that
of brand equity pyramid and it helps in indicating the psychological bond that the customers

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have with the brand. The resonance of a product can be understood from the incidence of
behavioural loyalty and the sense of the community.
Brand equity of Zara
The brand salience of Zara is established with the help of their new wardrobe for
every season that helps in serving to the needs of the changing tastes of the customers. Zara
has clothing apparel and the styles of the clothes are made in such a manner so that it can be
suitable for all kinds of occasion. Zara has various kinds of the product categories that helps
in suiting the needs of the male, female and that of the kids. The stylish design of Zara can be
bought with that of a limited budget that has ensured the brand salience of the company.
According to Steenkamp (2017), Zara has the latest fashion trends that helps in attracting a
wide range of customers. Zara takes recourse to centralized logistics along with the
distribution system that helps the brand in the area of performance within the world market.
The customers of Zara are ensured exclusivity along with the design freshness that helps in
maintaining the reputation of the popular clothing label. The company outsources less
amount of manufacturing as compared to the competitors that helps the company in reacting
in a quick manner to that of seasonality along with the unforeseen demand. It has been stated
by Burmann et al. (2017), that Zara has fast fashion system that helps in the exchange of the
information that helps in building the credibility of the brand in front of the customers. It
helps in evoking positive feelings on the part of the customers. The supply chain of Zara
helps in ensuring the fact that the operational procedures of the company are seamless that
helps in portraying a good image before the customers that takes care of the element of
judgement. Zara has been able to change the way of working of the clothing industry and the
distribution of the company takes very few days that ensures “imagery” on the part of the
company. The speed of Zara in relation to the product development helps in exceeding
capabilities of the competitors that takes care of the aspect of resonance. The brand of Zara

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can be said to be synonymous with that of the cutting edge in relation to fashion at a pricing
that is affordable. The designers of Zara draw that of design sketches which is then showed to
the market specials that helps in assuring the superior quality of the products of the company.
Brand equity of Gucci
Gucci has a loveable identity that has helped it in emerging as a fashion logo that can
be easily be recognized by people from across the world that is integral in relation to salience
of the company. The slogan of the company is “made in Italy” that helps the brand in the
creation of a unique personality which has helped the company in emerging as symbol of that
of grandeur. This ensures the resonance of the company that has helped it in rising above the
competitors (Veloutsou and Guzman 2017). Gucci has high quality of the craftsmanship
along with unparalleled design that ensures that the performance of the company is of the top
standard. The main idea of Gucci is distinctiveness that has helped the firm in working within
the niche market. Gucci has a large number of outlets that has helped in increasing the
efficiency of the firm. The company has price range that gives rise to Veblen effect that helps
in making a good impression before the customers. The imagery that is evoked from the
brand identity of Gucci combines that of modernity along with prestige. The company makes
use of the strategic alliances with various kinds of the brand ambassadors that acts as a sign
of the prestige for the company (Rosenbaum-Elliott, Percy and Pervan 2015). Gucci can be
said to be superior in terms of judgement as it is a coveted luxury brand across the world.
Gucci has been able to introduce a new dimension by making use of the strategy of social
media that makes it superior in relation to judgement. The code of the ethics of the company
states that it wants to act as a progressive leader within the world of fashion. The feelings that
are felt by the customer can be said to be wide and the company offers psychological
empowerment to the customers. Gucci has high engagement with customers along with that
of the community. The psychological empowerment is provided to the customers with the

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help of their brand message that helps in the formulation of a strong community sense that
proves to be useful pertaining to resonance of the company. It has helped in making the brand
an integral part of that of the social elites.
Comparison of brand equity of Zara and Gucci
Zara has emerged to be a popular name in fashion industry owing to the quick
turnaround that helps in the easy availability of the products in the store. The brands Zara
along with Gucci are instrumental in offering fashionable item to the customers. Zara does
not possess enough budget for the advertisements whereas Gucci has a lot of budget that the
company makes use of for the purpose of marketing. Zara has loyal customer base and the
customers are provided with the opportunity of the exchange policy that helps in serving the
customers. The company however mainly targets people of the age group of 10-20 whereas
Gucci on the other hand helps in targeting the people who belong to the age group of 15-40
years. Zara takes into consideration the preference of the customer while designing the
clothes that outs the company in an advantageous position when compared to Gucci
(Burmann et al. 2017). It has been found that both Gucci along with Zara have the resources
along with the assets that has helped in the establishment of the factor of brand equity. Zara
does not possess any kind of slogan that can help in attracting the customers but Gucci on the
other hand has a tagline that can draw the customers towards the popular brand. The pricing
of the fashion products of Gucci are more as compared to the products of Zara that makes
Gucci only affordable for the affluent sections of the society.
Conclusion and Recommendations
Brand management is indicative of planning that can help a company in making good
impression on market. Brand management can help companies in establishing good
relationship with the customers. Brand equity is indicative of the additional value which is

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received by a product. Brand equity of the various companies can be measured by taking
recourse to the factor of brand awareness. Surveys and the focus groups can help in
measuring brand equity of companies. Brand salience of that of Zara is established by taking
recourse to their new wardrobe that caters to tastes of customers. The clothing apparel of Zara
can suit various kinds of occasions. Zara makes use of latest trends that can attract a large
number of customers. Gucci as an identity is loved by the people throughout the world. It can
be recommended that Zara can make use of e-commerce that can help in spreading the hold
of the company in various kinds of markets. The company can advertise more on the platform
of the social media that can help in increasing the dominance of the brand within the world
market. Gucci should lower down the prices of the products that can make it affordable for a
wide section of the population. Gucci can innovate the products that can serve the needs of
the customers of the present age.

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