World without brands:

World without brands:
1. Background
...A world without brands... It existed once, and still exists, more or less, in the worlds poorest places. No raucous advertising, no ugly billboards, no McDonalds. Yet, given a chance and a bit of money, people flee this Eden. They seek out Budweiser instead of their local tipple... What should we conclude? That people are pawns in the hands of giant companies with huge advertising budgets and global reach? Or that brands bring something that people think is better than what they had before?
(The Economist, 2001a: 11)
2. Question
Critically discuss the statement. Think about some inherited presuppositions which link to the binary between so called east and west, i.e. developing and developed world which is inherited from the past. Think about the notion that most of the popular brands originate in the developed world, but through their marketing strategies, and inherited presuppositions, these are considered more valuable then the local ones. What is the role of international marketing in this process? How does it affect bottom of the pyramid market?
You can do complete theoretical piece and illustrate your argument with the examples, or you can use a case study of a company.
3. Structure
Introduction and Background information of the company if you are using a case study of the particular company
Development of the argument through the theoretical conceptualisation
Concluding remarks