We live in a society that defines us by what we consume and how. Every day we make purchasing decisions that express our sense of belonging, our commitments to the environment, and our systems of belief. We often choose to buy things, not necessarily because we need them, but because we believe that these things will help us express who we are—in our own eyes and in the eyes of others. Whether we like it or not, consumerism is the prevalent ideology of our time. Led by Gjoko Muratovski who has long been influential at the intersection of design and business, Consumer Culture is the ideal starting point for an investigation into the social construction of the global economy.

Centered around the research findings of marketing and design consultants whose clients include Coca-Cola, P&G, General Motors, Deloitte, and Vodafone, among many others, Design for Business takes a practical approach to the role of design as a strategic resource to business. Including the studies of eminent academics, graphic designers, and corporate consultants who have worked with Bentley, Cadbury, British Airways, MasterCard, the Sydney and London Olympics, Nespresso, NFL, and many others, this collection assembles reflections from the people who help define the design and branding strategies of some of the most successful companies in the world. One of the few books available today that brings together rigorous studies on design and business from a multidisciplinary perspective, Design for Business also features a transcript from a conversation between editor Gjoko Muratovski and Dana Arnett, CEO of the US-based design and branding consultancy VSA Partners, in which the latter shares his experience working for more than thirty years with top companies such as IBM, Harley-Davidson, Nike, Converse, GAP, Caterpillar, and General Electric and explains why research and strategy is important in design and branding.

One of very few books to bring together business and design, this collection features essays on topics ranging from branding and sustainability to business-driven design education. The centerpiece of the volume is an essay on simplicity in design by Per Mollerup, a distinguished Scandinavian designer, professor, and author. Bolstering this are transcripts of two interviews with the former global art director for Nike for the 2012 London Olympics, paired with a paper on Nike’s design and marketing strategies for the Olympic Games. Other features include a transcript of an interview with Dan Formosa, a New York-based design consultant, design researcher, and founding member of the iconic Smart Design studio; an essay on the importance of a research-led design practice in typography; a consideration of color and brand identity; an essay on packaging design testing methods; a study of greenwashing, sustainability, and communication design; a case study on organizational management by design; an essay on strategic decision-making in new product development; research on how Australian businesses are hiring designers; and an exciting case study on the design partnership between the hearing aid company BHS and the design studio Designworks that has revolutionized a health care sector.

This collection continues the successful Design for Business series, gathering work by scholars, researchers, and professionals that aim to raise awareness of design as a strategic business resource by consolidating it with other divergent, yet highly influential fields. Volume 3 covers such topics as the branding of a nation, care for the aging, public transportation, airports, workplace interiors, manufacturing, economic competitiveness, and public funding for new product development. First presented at the Design for Business research conference in Melbourne, Australia, the contributions assembled here will together keep pushing the interaction of design and business forward in productive, innovative ways.

Fashion branding is more than just advertising. It helps to encourage the purchase and repurchase of consumer goods from the same company. While historically fashion branding has primarily focused on consumption and purchasing decisions, recent scholarship suggests that branding is a process that needs to be analyzed from a style, luxury, and historical pop cultural view using critical, ethnographic, individualistic, or interpretive methods.

In this collection, the contributors explore the meaning behind fashion branding in the context of the contested power relations underpinning the production, marketing, and consumption of style and fashion as part of our global culture.