Like a wave on the ocean : the fluid personality of the movimento brand i

This article examines an increasingly common practice of companies, the effort to establish strong ties between their brands and consumers. In this examination we apply the ideas of brand personality developed by Aaker (1997), according to which the attribution of human characteristics to brands is fundamental. From this perspective, we seek to understand the ontic condition of brands, through investigation of Movimento, a leading Brazilian beachwear brand, to discover “who” Movimento is based on the characteristics that constitute its personality in the vision consumers. The investigation is an exploratory qualitative study, based on in-depth interviews scrutinized through functional discourse analysis. The results indicate fourteen categories, with two component profiles of the ontic characteristics of the brand. These findings suggest the existence of theoretical implications about the relationship between brands and consumers, as well as providing insights into brand positioning strategy.


INTRODUCTION
n recent years, brands have been gaining importance regarding their influence on consumers' choices.Due to this, firms are seeking to adjust their marketing efforts to optimize their actions within the market segments in which they work (KELLER, 2011;SONNIER;AINSLE, 2011, LEITE, WINCK, ZONIN, 2012).This effort works in another direction than relationship management, by which companies try to establish stronger and more lasting relationships with their customers (PALMATIER et al., 2011;PATSIOURA;MALAMA;VLACHOPOULOU et al., 2011).
These two points stand at opposite ends of the scale with respect to the relationships of brands and consumers (FOURNIER, 1998;SUNG;CHOI, 2010;SWAMINATHAN;PAGE;GÜRHAN-CANLI, 2007).In the midst of this dichotomy, the concept of brand personality is indispensible to understand what exists among the topics of this area, as mentioned initially.
Brand personality can be understood as a process of anthroporphization of a set of representations of companies.Hence, people treat brands as if they were other persons, giving human characteristics to them (AAKER, 1997;GROHMANN, 2009;MÄLAR et al., 2011).
The concept of brand personality is compatible with our search, since we want to better understand how a brand's image is formed from a relational standpoint, to understand its condition for existence.
In recent years the Brazilian economy has experienced vigorous growth, a process that has been accompanied by the development of stronger brands in the country.In light of this fact, it makes sense to try to gain a better understanding of these brands rather than focusing on those from the international arena, where an extensive literature already exists.Therefore, homegrown branding is a worthy subject of study.
As far as we are aware, this theme has not been explored widely in the national literature.What we found on this subject are attempts to understand certain scales in a different perspective from the original ones in foreign studies covering broader theoretical models or as a base to analyze other topics.Brazilian brands proper have only recently been studied.
For example, Muniz & Marchetti (2005) measured the personality aspects of a Brazilian brand by adapting the scale of Aaker (1997) to their purposes, culminating in conclusive findings different from the personality of the same brands in similar studies covering other countries.That scale was also used to understand the personality of a Brazilian shoe brand (BICHUETI, BATTISTELA, GROHMANN, 2010), a similar proposal to that applied by  Petroski, Baptista and Marcheti (2010) in the context of city-brands.Añaña & Nique (2009) examined the influence of Brazilian regional subcultures on the perception and construction of the image of the Nike brand by Brazilian consumers, using the scale of values of Rokeach (1968Rokeach ( , 1973) ) and the brand personality scale of Aaker (1997).The results confirmed the influence of culture on the construction of the brand's image.Also applying scales, Leão, Souza Neto, Mello, (2007) investigated the human values instilled by brands in the eyes of their consumers, finding that a single value can be representative of a category.The scale of Aaker was also employed by Mengarelli (2008) to better understand the how teenagers express their subjective feelings by means of the symbolism attributed to products and brands, stressing how ephemeral these feelings can be among this segment of consumers.On the matter of how the construction of brand personality can be affected by a determined communication strategy, Fisher ( 2009) found an intuitive strategy to be the best.With similar aims, Pontes & Parente (2008) evaluated the personality of three global brands in the sports segment using the scales of Aaker (1997) and Kapferer (2003), finding similar images of these brands.
As also mentioned previously, consideration of brand personality is a necessary part of the formulation of brand repositioning strategies (SERRALVO;FURRIER, 2008;DALFOVO;PEDROSO, 2008) or consideration of the influence of Brazilian origin as an element for building images of luxury brands for the international market (FINESTRALI;  2002).In other words, the brand, as a cultural artifact, serves as a representative of the set of marketing efforts for constructing a company's image and relationship with consumers, common to brands aligned with management branding strategies.
Based on the above introductory discussion, the aim of this study is to understand "who" Movimento is, by means of identification and assessment of the human traits that make up its personality in consumers' opinions.

BRAND PERSONALITY
Brand personality can be described as a set of human qualitative characteristics applied to a brand.In this respect, researchers have developed a group of "Big Five" dimensions of personality traits: sincerity, excitement, competence, sophistication and resistance.These five dimensions can be divided into fifteen characteristics (AAKER, 1997).This framework has been used by various other studies in the area (e.g., GROHMANN, 2009;KIM, BAEK, MARTIN, 2010;MADRIGAL;BOUSH, 2008).
According to Aaker (1996), the perception of these qualities can come from brands in various forms.One of them is through the products and their elements, such as packaging and pricing.Brands can also be perceived by aspects other than those of the product, such as advertising and symbols.These aspects serve as bridges for the relationship between the brand and those who perceive it.That relationship can be merely functional or friendly (AAKER, 1997).Like in human relationships, the parties are not totally passive in this phenomenon.Fournier (1998) believes brands are part of an active relationship.It is common for a brand to be envisioned as if it were a person (BLACKSTON, 1993).It can thus be concluded that people are influenced by the personality of brands.
The activity of brands is important, since the image of firms is not totally dominated by the perception of consumers.Brand personality is also flexible, and can change according to the situation.A personality said to be effective takes into consideration the current scenario in which it is inserted and the power to enable self-expression of customers.McCracken (1984;1989) investigated brands as influences on the self of persons, so that brands have cultural  LINCOLN, 2005).Therefore, we used the data collected to construct empirical categories, which is acceptable due to the semi-inductive character adopted, in which theory is utilized in the form of a construct, thus providing theoretical support to help interpret the findings (LEÃO, MELLO, VIEIRA, 2009).Hence, instead of working with measurement scales, we examine the ontic condition of the brand, beyond the dimensions of the personality traits themselves.
The data were collected by unstructured in-depth interviews with a topic as a guide (FLICK, 2009), with four open questions.The first question acted as a filter, helping to define the validity of the data, given that the responses did not permit making inferences on the possibility of continuing or not, i.e., whether the participant was aware of the brand GASKELL, 2002).The other topics allowed us to extract the respondents' considerations on the meaning of the brand as well as the importance of their relationship with it.The respondents were discovered, by means of indication of the participants themselves, based on their acquaintance with others who knew of the brand, according to the "snowball" method (BERNARD, 1994).This technique assures that all the interviewees will be familiar with the brand of interest.The number of participants was determined by the saturation method  , 2002).The total number of people interviewed was 14, with saturation having been reached on the twelfth.
Since speaking is a form of social discourse, we adopted functional discourse analysis for analysis of the data (STILLER, 1998).This fits in the pragmatic approach to analysis (MATTOS, 2005).In other words, the use of language determines the comprehension of the syntax and semantics of statements (WITTGENSTEIN, 2005).To assure reliable results, we followed the ideas suggested by Gill (2002): reading that deconstructs the texts to guarantee that the meanings are part of a broader research context, not only a restricted perspective; elicitation of analytical categories by coding; analysis of the data that seeks convergence and variability of the data; and last, testing the data based on criteria for validation and confidence typical of qualitative research.
Therefore, the interviews were transcribed and reread according to the procedure described above, both for validation and familiarization with the data.Only then was the analysis begun.This was divided into two parts.First we carried out the codification, establishing categories related to the brand's personality.Then we analyzed the relationships between these categories.The two were carried out by inter-coding reliability (MILES; HUBERMAN, 1994).This procedure involves analysis by two researchers, who triangulate their individual conclusions.A coordinating researcher also analyzed the transcripts, to further triangulate the analysis, to assure satisfaction of the criteria for validity and reliability of qualitative research (PAIVA JR.; LEÃO; MELLO, 2011).

DESCRIPTION OF THE RESULTS
Our analysis led us to identify 14 categories representative of the personality traits of the Movimento brand.These are labeled by means of adjectives to make them elucidative of human qualities, in view of the concept of brand personality discussed in the literature review.
Chart 1 presents these categories and their respective descriptions.Because all of these descriptions have empirical character, we first present an elucidative phrase of each category in a conceptual sense, resulting from empirical inference, followed by details on how each of them was identified in the data, always related to elements (i.e., characteristics) of the brand.

Accessible
Refers to the ease of access to the brand.In our findings, it refers to the spatial distribution of its sales outlets.

Happy
Refers to the aura of enjoyment of the brand.Refers to the use of the brand's products in enjoyable situations, such as holidays and summer vacation.

Attentive
Refers to the care dispensed by the brand.In our findings, this is associated with the service provided by the store sales staff, who show astuteness, making suggestions and expressing opinions on the choice of products, and the possibility that customers can

Common
Refers to the lack of distinction of the brand.In our findings, it refers to the lack of media presence and popularization, according to the level of adoption by people of different social strata, as well as the lack of originality of the products, making it a secondary option, or at times even mentioned in a tone of stigma.

Conservative
Refers to the lack of innovation, the perception of how the models and print patters repeat in each collection.

Distinctive
Refers to the brand's differentiation.In this survey, this differentiation involves quality and style of the products, as well as the selectivity in relation to customers.

Diversified
Refers to the variety of options of the brand, specifically here the range of products offered.

Fun
Refers to the brands hedonic aura.In our findings, this is related to summer, beach and tropicality -notions present in the models and print patterns of the products -but particularly by the association of the brand stylish beachwear.

Stylish
Refers to the esthetic dimension of the brand, identified in relation to the models and print patters of the bikini models.

Youthful
Refers to the youthful aura of the brand, to the fact the products are aimed at and in harmony with young people and a youthful lifestyle.

Mediatic
Refers to the brand's media projection, its presence in the mass communications media.

Prodigious
Refers to the process of success of the brand.For our purposes, it refers to two interrelated variants: obtainment of social recognition derived from its success, despite its origin in a rustic state (Pernambuco).

Professional
Refers to the brand's competence, the success of the company's management processes.

Lapse
Refers to the carelessness associated with the brand.In our findings this involves lack of privacy and adequacy of the store facilities.Chart 1 -Categories and descriptions The next step was to analyze the relationships existing between these categories.This entailed detailed reading of the interview transcriptions and mapping the points mentioned by the respondents in which different categories were imbricated in a single discursive sense.At the end of this procedure, we could prepare a map of the relationships of the categories (Fig. 1), elucidative of the dynamic existing among them.We now elucidate each of these relationships, based on the categories with the most relationships established.

Relationships with Fun
The fun category is related with seven others.Happy is one of these.The two central ideas of these categories already have semantic proximity, such as enjoyment (referring to happy) and pleasure (referring to fun), besides the match between the secondary ideas of these two terms.The use of the products at times of relaxation like vacations is the brand's focus because of the use of the products in these periods.An example is bikinis, which are mainly used in times of sunshine.This is reflected in some of the expressions of the interviewees in trying to define the brand: "I think it's for young people, beach fashion (...) I recall summer, beach, happiness...".The relationship is explicit by the presence of the idea of beach fashion and happiness in the same line of reasoning.
BBR, Braz.Bus.Rev. (Engl.ed., Online), Vitória, v. 10, n. 3, Art. 2, p. 34 -52, jul. -sep. 2013 www.bbronline.com.brFun is also related to conservative.This is because of the characterization of repetition (lack of daring, little novelty) of the print patterns on the beachwear line (one of the main characterizers of the fun category).While the products are associated with fun and the beach, they are also not innovative.This can be observed in a statement by one of the interviewees on the brand's products: "In the past five or ten years, beach style has changed a lot (...) I like the styles, but one thing I don't like is that I think the print patterns it uses in its collections are sort of repetitive."It can be seen that the print patterns used on the fabrics for beachwear have many traces in common.is related to the style used in situations of seaside pleasure sets the brand apart precisely for specializing in this type of market.As put by one of the respondents: "High-quality beachwear, with relatively uncommon, differentiated, color patters."The originality of Movimento comes from the atmosphere of summer vacation that it creates.
There is also a relationship between fun and prodigious.This comes from the fact the company achieved success in the beachwear segment.In other words, the character of seaside pleasure that the brand exhales catapulted its ascension, as if the firm is doing what it knows best (making clothes for the beach) and has achieved great success this way.This is summarized in the comments of one of the respondents: "Beachwear from Pernambuco.It's a brand that has managed to achieve nationwide success."To this we can add another comment: "I think perhaps it's on this path of wanting to demonstrate this thing of being at the top of beachwear, of creating beach style here in Pernambuco and outside the state as well, because now they're parading at the São Paulo Fashion Week."The brand's success is carried on the banner of beachwear.
Another relationship is between fun and diversified.This connection is due to the fact the brand offers various product options within the beachwear category.The multiple ways of consuming the brand intensifies the pleasure because of the possibility of satisfying a greater range of needs, which can take forms such as different types of print patterns and types of pieces for specific use within the beachwear category.This can be seen in the words of one of the respondents: "It's a very good brand, for the beach, beach fashion.At the start it was only bikinis, but now it's expanded," and also "I like the casual wear better -beach dresses, purses, hats -all those things that identify that I'm the type who frequents the beach, I'm a stylish lady, more than the bikinis themselves."It is clear that for Movimento, beachwear is not limited only to bikinis.
The interviews also revealed a relationship between fun and youthful.The brand's products are associated with the beach and are widely worn by young people.A random photo of a crowded beach will almost certainly show young people wearing products from Movimento.The distinction carried by the brand exercises a greater attraction for younger people by highlighting their exuberant bodies, in the flower of youth, in this agreeable setting next to the ocean.The following excerpt reflects the feelings triggered by the brand: "I think it's for young people, beachwear."Youth and beachwear are thus directly associated.
A last relationship is between fun and stylish.This entails the obvious marriage of beachwear with the esthetic of a brand aimed precisely at this market segment.The items sold wear the brand's items stand apart for their youth: the brand's youthfulness has power to distinguish it.
Finally, there is a relationship between distinctive and attentive.As in other relationships, the care dispensed by the brand to its customers sets it apart.Proper attention to customers in stores conveys the impression of high quality.One interviewee explained her devotion to the brand: "For me, the facility of finding a store in a shopping center with personalized attention and a product there with perfect fit and finish, its worth paying a little bit more."Further on the relationship between sales staff and customers, respondent said: "I relate well to the people there, the salespeople, and since I know somebody who works there in a management position, I have a direct contact and he directed the items to me so I could see and choose, so this created a stronger tie."So, the way the company's sales staff treats customers conveys the idea of superior quality, which his worth the higher cost.

Relationships with Diversified and Prodigious
Next in line in terms of number of relationships are diversified and prodigious with four, each, of which fun is one, besides their relationship with each other.Starting with diversified, we can mention its relationship with professional.This connection is due to the fact the plurality of options is the fruit of a management process.The need for innovation demanded by customers was satisfied with new ways of selling, more flexible and varied ways.Without a good management structure, it would not have been possible to formulate these new ways of satisfying customer needs.This can be seen in the following comment: "They try to innovate: a bikini with the focus on the bottom, with the look of shorts, or a bikini with a distinctive top, so as not to have the same old bikini look."The professionalism is reflected in the successful effort to bring diversification to customers.
Diversified is also related to common.This relationship can be understood as a combination of a diversification of products that contain common elements of mass production.This apparent paradox is resolved by the idea of efficiency.The same print pattern is used various times in different ways.As a result, in examining certain products, the concomitant ideas arise of variety and lack of originality, due to the adoption of ideas already utilized in other situations.This is reflected in one respondent's comment on the brand's products: "It has variety, but with the same piece of fabric they do many things.With the same fabric they make bikinis and beach dresses."So, variation can be seen from one angle while lack of innovation can be seen from another, leading to classification of common.Regarding the relationship between diversified and prodigious, the brand has grown in fame and also in options, with the two elements being perceived as accompanying each other.
The expansion in the range of items sold is commonly related with an undertaking that became successful.Were it not for diversification, the brand could not have become as prodigious as it is today.As put by one respondent: "It's a very good brand, for the beach, beachwear.At the start it was only bikinis, but now it has expanded, so that everyone can buy throughout the year, not only in the summertime.From its start in Pernambuco, it's become a national and international reference, so it's a very strong brand here."The company started out only selling bikinis, but with time it gained space and expanded its product options.
With respect to prodigious, there are two further relationships to discuss.One of them is with common.This connection exists because the brand's success was not achieved in overly exaggerated form, which means it shares attributes of both overnight sensation brands and those with minor expression.For this reason, its growth is associated with a more democratic appeal of the brand, without being restricted only to certain social segments.
Hence its success is based on a variety of popular appeals, as stated by one respondent: "I think they (Movimento) are in a growth phase.I don't thin they've reached the top yet," and continues, "today when I see a bikini...No Movimento, because I think that in my profile it's still popular.I think they want to go in the direction of a Salinas."The ascension is perceptible and materialized by means of a wide range of customers.
The relationship between prodigious and accessible rests on the fact the spatial distribution of the storesmeaning their accessibilitycontributes to an impression of success of the brand.This can be noted in the following excerpt from a respondent's comments: "I think it's a serious beachwear brand.You can find its stores in a many places." The term "serious" in the context praises the brand as being successful.The aspect highlighted to characterize this is precisely the fact the company has stores in many places.

Previous Relationships
Stylish, youthful and common each have three relationships.Both stylish and youthful are related to fun and distinctive, relationships that have already been described.Common, in turn, is related with diversified and prodigious, both of which have also already been presented.Therefore, it remains for us only to report the other relationships of each of these categories.
Stylish is related to professional.One of the reasons for the good esthetic construct of the brand is its good working structure.In this respect, one of the respondents expressed the

Figure 1 -
Figure 1 -Relationships of the categories Another relationship of fun is with distinctive.The reason is that within the world of beachwear the brand distinguishes those who consumes it.The intensity with which the brand