Abstract:

Consumer culture is a complex phenomenon of visual representations and the politics of visibility. Products have become markers of social distinction and form a distinctive part of people's lives. Brands are partners in achieving social goals (emotional, interpersonal, experimental) and consumers are purposeful when entering into relationships with brands, choosing brands that will allow them to achieve their desired goals. In this way, brands become instrumental partners in our lives, as brands allow us to construct and strengthen our identity. This paper offers a hypothesis that brands have social lives as they enter into relationships with people. It proposes that we have to adopt semiotic approaches to explore the multiplicity of such relationships.