The Cogwheels of District Branding

: A multiple case study on key learnings, barriers, and enablers

Abstract

City centers are struggling because of higher inflation and that retail stores move out of the city centers. District Branding as a strategy includes creating districts to promote the attractiveness of the city centers. The purpose of this study was to explore how City Developers have used District Branding as a city development strategy for creating attractive city centers. A qualitative multiple case study has been used to answer the research question, including six different Swedish cities and the study a project in collaboration with the organization Kristianstad City. Data exploring City Developers’ experiences was collected through eleven interviews with City Developers, and people with other similar roles. The findings indicate that District Branding can be a useful strategy for developing attractive city centers. The conclusion drawn from the empirical findings is that there are three cogwheels, relations, value propositions, and place identity, that enable District Branding. City Developers work with building strong relations, creating and enhancing value propositions, and creating place identity within the districts. This thesis will contribute with both practical and theoretical contributions. City Developers can use this study to gain insights about how to work with District Branding and at the same time, the model presented in this thesis can be the starting point for future research.

Date of Award	2024-Jun
Original language	English
Supervisor	Lisa Källström (Supervisor), Niklas Vallström (Assessor) & Heléne Tjärnemo (Examiner)