Interactions and Dynamism among Product Brand, Corporate Brand, and Local Brand:

A Case Study of Ishiya Co., Ltd.

Abstract

This paper is a case study of Ishiya Co., Ltd., a leading confectionery manufacturer in Hokkaido. The company’s product brand “Shiroi Koibito” is so well-known that it is ranked first in souvenir confectionery rankings. The company has established “Shiroi Koibito Park” bearing the product brand name, and developed various collaborative products. The company has overcome adversities such as trademark infringement with Yoshimoto Kogyo Co., Ltd. and others over the “Omoshiroi Koibito” brand and a drop in sales due to a sharp decline in tourists caused by the coronavirus pandemic. On the other hand, when Ishiya Co., Ltd. opened a store at GINZA SIX in Tokyo, it did not offer a lineup of Shiroi Koibito, but instead put its corporate brand “ISHIYA” at the forefront. Both Shiroi Koibito and ISHIYA are backed by the overwhelming regional brand of “Hokkaido”. This study describes the history of the company, focusing on the product brand Shiroi Koibito, and examines how the corporate brand ISHIYA and the regional brand Hokkaido interact in the process from multiple perspectives of brand components, brand equity, and the experience value framework. Based on these observations, the paper presents new theoretical implications for brand research.