Ahmedabad City Branding - A Research Report

Introduction

City Branding is a subset of the larger activity under the umbrella term of Place
Branding. It is based on the notion that like all other products cities compete with
other cities for tourists, resources and capital. City branding literature makes direct
comparison of cities with products and modifies the existing frameworks to
accommodate for the uniqueness of the place product with respect to variety of
consumers/stakeholders, share ability of the place and its simultaneous evolution.
Thus, the intent of Ahmedabads branding includes a larger goal of building a
positive brand image with attributes such as history, heritage, character of locals
and not just an awareness exercise creating differentiation as a destination.

Ahmedabad is the seventh largest city in India and is the commercial capital of the
state (Desai, 2012). It is located on the banks of river Sabarmati and has been an
important industrial and economic hub since medieval times. According to most
historians, it was founded in 1411 by Sultan Ahmed Shah. It is often compared to
Delhi as other metropolitan cities like Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru are fairly younger
and others which are similarly richer in history have reduced to small insignificant
towns. Ahmedabad, like Delhi has retained its prominence and prosperity over the
centuries. Ahmedabad has been a centre for development and has been ahead of
its times since pre independence years. The efforts to make it a centre of learning
have resulted in the constant growth of the city. It has shaped up as an important
centre for business and has attracted intra state migration owing to its economic
and educational offerings. Ahmedabad was ranked third in 2010 in Forbes list of
fastest growing cities of the decade (Kotkin, 2010). As places compete for resources
human and capital, branding of Ahmedabad should be considered an important
milestone for complete success of Gujarat tourism efforts like Khushboo Gujarat ki.

Ahmedabad has been considered an anchor for representation of Gujarat. It serves

as a node for attracting investments into the state, as well as it represents the state
of governance in Gujarat as a whole. Thus, the State Government of Gujarat has
promoted Ahmedabad at the centre of its promotion efforts, coupling the city and
the region (Desai, 2012). The State Government made conscious efforts after the
2002 crisis to brand the region as a safe and business friendly area and thus
launched The Vibrant Gujarat campaign. These efforts have been partly successful
in creating a desired image but have been criticized by scholars for
misrepresentation and manipulation of image. While any city branding exercise
involves its own politics of state, the following paper maintains a neutral stand in
identifying a common and a structured narrative representative of Ahmedabads
image.

Perception gap between citys identity (projected) and citys image (perceived)
would be reduced by effective city branding exercise.
The following section reviews the literature available for the city branding exercise,
extracts the fundamental elements associated with the identity of Ahmedabad and
lists the stakeholders based on the literature review. The literature used to build a
city brand strategy includes scholarly articles as well as case studies on city and
place branding, which have been used to extract the best practices and theories for
city branding. These have been mapped with the previous branding efforts for
Ahmedabad to understand the gap. Further, the history of evolution of Ahmedabad
has been studied to understand the common thread binding all stakeholders.

This study may be of interest to the Singapore government to identify the area of
improvements on the existing campaign; to discover and accentuate the campaign
strengths, and diminish the campaign weaknesses so as to create a strong brand
identity; and expectantly sustain competitive advantages over the neighboring
countries. This paper utilizes a case study research approach, as it addresses a
contemporary issue. This study can only be exploratory and descriptive in nature,
and cannot be generalized. This information gathered relies primarily on secondary
research (literature review), and informal discussions. The lack of information
cannot validate the types of perception survey done in the past. Marketing
collaterals (brochure, video clips, and website) related to the Vibrant Gujarat brand
was used to analyze the content of the campaign to study the brand image.

Literature Review

Branding is a process of differentiating a product or a service from that of the

competitors. Classical branding theory is developed with consumer products in the
centre which propose smaller components in developing brands. These components
are-

1. Names, Symbols, Logos : which help in creating a visual identity thereby

aiding awareness. (Keller, 1993)
2. Brand Images - Brand image is a set of associations usually organized in a
meaningful way (Aaker) and brand association in consumer memory (Keller)

The branding models can be broadly understood as developing brands based on two
broad categories Tangibile components , i.e. Physical, functional features and
Intangibile Components, i.e. Emotional, symbolic features. Keller adds experiential
features which can also be added as intangible component.

These components have been used to extrapolate the branding process to places
which include nation, cities, heritage sites. It has given way to a new area of study
which deals in branding of places. Place branding is a process that helps places
create an image in the mind of the customers and competes for their mindshare. A
place can be considered as a combination of distinctive useful properties and
characteristics that can be experienced or can be beneficial to shapers and
consumers of that place (Rozhkov & Skriabina, 2015). It is based on the notion that
similar to products and service, cities need to differentiate each other and appear in
consideration set of its target customers. The idea began with destination branding
for tourists as potential customers, the term has expanded to incorporate creating
positive brand image for places. Applications of Place Branding have now expanded
from investments promoting recreational tourism to more long term high
involvement investment like inhabitance and business. The branding exercise may
be small scale and may aim at creating differentiation, raising awareness or a large
scale long term which aims at building positive brand image with attributes like city
heritage and character of local people.

The difference between a consumer product and an experiential product like City is
that city product is uniquely consumed by each consumer, mostly simultaneously,
leading to a variety of experience to the same product. Also, unlike the consumer
product, the city product is differently targeted to different consumers with a
different meaning. This increases the complexity of the branding process of the city.
Similar to high involvement products, the brand history is important even for the
city product. The cities past, its present and its proposed future become relevant in
building a brand image of the city. The following section enlists the various aspects
of Ahmedabad city which play an important role in defining its character.

Various authors in the marketing field have different definitions for place branding.
Place branding is defined as an extremely complex, and highly political activity
that can enhance a nations economy, national self-image and identity. (Morgan et
al, 2004) Gold and Ward (1994) define place branding as a deliberate attempt to
use publicity and marketing effort to communicate a specific message or images of
a particular geographic location or areas to a selected target audience. While Simon
Anholt describes that place branding encompasses measuring that identity,
evaluating its strengths and weaknesses and building and communicating
differentiating and winning characteristics. (Anholt, 2009)

Theoretical Frameworks for Place Branding

The paucity of work and limited documentation of limited branding efforts has lead
to adaptation of branding models to place branding. While corporate branding
models have been used to build nation as a brand, the same can be interchanged to
build a city branding strategy. The following three models have been used for place
branding

1. Kotler et al This model proposes five strategic approaches to build a

place(city) brand strategy. Firstly, a city should perform a SWOT analysis
(Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats) to clearly define the
objectives of branding exercise. Secondly, the city should choose a specific
direction (example history, monuments, industries) to create differentiation.
Thirdly, to identify an umbrella concept that could encompass different
 branding activities within the city. Forth approach is to finance and allocate
funds for impactful branding activities. And, the last approach is to monitor
export products to ensure they meet the standards.

2. Gilmore Gilmore assembled a framework for place branding. He developed

it in the context of a country but the model can be interchangeably used for
various facets of place branding which includes city branding. The model has
spirit of people at its core. IT understands that the spirit comprises of the
values and acts as an anchor to strategy formulation. This spirit motivates
people differently about various factors like History, Economy, Environment,
Resources, Culture which in turn define the identity of the city.

3. Anholt The Hexagon of building a Competitive Identity is based on the

premise that places compete with each other for resources. The model
proposes six paths to promote a place image. These can be used in
combination or silos to build a strong place image. Tourism bring in revenues
and consciousness in locals for promoting their place. Similarly, the people of
the place, including various celebrities and leaders also help in building an
image of the place.
 The Hexagon of Competitive Identity by Anholt,2008

Ahmedabad

The city of Ahmedabad has been documented through the centuries under different
rulers and few significant ones have been Amdavadno Itihas by Maganlal
Vakhatchnad, The Cities of Gujrashtra by HG Brigg, Gujratnu Patnagar : Amdavad by
Ratnamanirao Jote and various other during reign of Delhi Sultanate. Also, various
memoirs by influential modern educated locals have contributed to the
understanding of Ahmedabad as it is today. The following section reviews the
literature available for Ahmedabad understanding the various aspects that become
important for developing a brand image for Ahemdabad.

History:

As mentioned earlier, Ahmedabad was established in 1411, by Sultan Ahmad Shah.

The legend propogates that Ahmad Shah saw a hare chasing hunting hounds and
thus decided to build his capital on the land possessing unique qualities which gave
even the weaker a chance to be equal. The similar myth has been associated to the
cities of Vijaynagar, Malacca and Chandrapur in India. This is considered to be an
allegory of self assertion and defiance, thus reflecting on the temperament of the
city, which has proven to punch above its weight. While the historians document the
beginning of the city in 1411, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation states that
King Karnadev of the Solanki Dynasty waged a war against Bhil king, Ashapall and
established Karnavati to mark his victory.

Ahmedabad has seen political shifts from Delhi Sultanate of North to Peshwa of
Central India. It has culminated various cultures and administrative styles over
centuries. The branding efforts have been documented in the citys history as its
rulers renamed it to embark a change of identity and ownership. The names
Ahmedabad, based on ruler Ahmad Shahs laying of foundation,Amdavad, based
on Gujarati pronounciation of Ahmedabad and Karnavati based on rule of Solanki
dynasty have been popular. Communal rift is deeply rooted in the citys history and
has trickled to 21st century. Howard Spodek in his book, Ahmedabad : Shock City of
Twentieth Century India, explains that the term Shock City was coined by Asa Briggs
in 1963 for Manchester, England. A shock city was epicenter of ethnic and social
problems resulting in extremely different reaction from visitors which it attracted
from all countries. Ahmedabad, earned the title of Manchester of India based on its
textile footprint, and equally earned that of Shock City of India. (Spodek, 2011)

Rigid caste system existed even in the textile mills.

Geography :

The city of Ahmedabad is situated on the banks of river Sabarmati which divides it
into East and West Ahmedabad. While eastern Ahmedabad preserves the central old
city, the western Ahmedabad is the modern city with educational institutions,
business districts, residential areas and shopping centres. There exists a just
noticeable difference on either side of the river, giving the city a different
perception to any visitor. While the Western Ahmedabad embraces modernity with a
cosmopolitan outlook, east Ahmedabad is preserving its history and heritage.

Erstwhile a part of Bombay Presidency, Ahmedabad was separated in 1960 as the

capital city of newly formed state of Gujarat. This led to Ahmedabad, imitating
Bombay for its course of development. It was the nearest metro to look upto for
cosmopolitan culture.

The book Ahmedabad : From Royal City to Megacity, explains geographically the
Ahmedabadi way of suppressing present gratification for future growth.
Ahmedabad, caught between a desert and a sea, the character of city is defined by
a juxtaposition of promise of plentitude and fear of paucity.

Demography :

The 2011 census, lists the total population of the city to be 55.78 lakhs with over 3
lakh Muslims and 2000 Parsis. 2273 registered NRIs living in Ahmedabad were
recorded in 2008. The Vania community constitutes the largest section of citys
population making it a trade heavy city. Gujarati is the official language of the city
along with Hindi and English, and is the most used language in the city.

Table 1: Demographic composition of Ahmedabad, 2011 Census. Source (AMC

Corporation, Ahmedabad Muncipal, 2011)

Data Of Amdavad Municipal Corporation Area - Census

2011
Total no. of House Holds: 1179823
Total Population: 5577940 Total
52.69
Total Male Population: 2938985
%
47.31
Total Female Population: 2638955
%
11.13
Total Population between 0 to 6 years: 621034
%
Total Male Population between 0 to 6
336063
years: 6.02%
Total Female Population between 0 to 6
284971
years: 5.11%
10.66
Total SC Population: 594523
%
Total SC Male Population: 312622 5.60%
Total SC Female Population: 281901 5.05%
Total ST Population: 66846 1.20%
Total ST Male Population: 35490 0.64%
Total ST Female Population: 31356 0.56%
78.46
Total Literate Population: 4376393
%
43.07
Total Literate Male Population: 2402523
%
35.39
Total Literate Female Population: 1973870
%
21.54
Total Illiterate Population: 1201547
%
Total Illiterate Male Population: 536462 9.62%
11.92
Total Illiterate Female Population: 665085
%

Ahmedabad has seen an array of influential leaders in every century who have
helped align its evolution and retain its prosperity. The concept of Nagarishths has
been popularly documented in the memoirs of the city. A sense of responsibility and
concern towards the urban matters in the local residents has been documented in
sources like Mirat-i-Ahmadi by diwan Muhammed Ali in 1761, Amdavadno Itihas by
Maganlal Vakatchand and various other writings. For example, Shaher sudharo,
Dalpatarams essay in 1858 talks about the need to clean city and made direct
comparisons with Bombay. It emphasized the need of regular sprinkling of water to
clear the dust, regular clearing of drainage, collection of garbage. The Citizens
Initiative, Ahmedabad, Ahmedabad Heat Action Plan and the recent proposal for
Smart City status show active citizen participation and deep rooted sense of
belongingness in the locals. The zeal of spirited industrialists and intellectuals like
Vikram Sarabhai and Kasturbhai Lalbhai led to establishment of centres of modern
education. These institutions further paved a way in creating a modern city
accommodating students from across the country.

Stakeholders

In his paper Integrating innovation and absorptive capacity into the place branding
process: A capability-based perspective, Joshua M discusses that the places are
influenced by the capabilities of the stakeholders. The value associated with a place
is dependent on the capabilities of the stakeholders which include the local
residents disproportionately (Daspit J, 2014).

According to Erik Braun, the residents play three different roles in branding the
place they define the place brand through their behavior and characteristics,
secondly they act as ambassadors for the created place brand (increase credibility
of the communication message) and thirdly as citizens and voters necessary for
legitimization of place branding (E. Braun, 2013).

The following section identifies the stakeholders in the city of Ahmedabad. As

discussed earlier in the paper, the value associated with a city is dependent on the
capabilities of the stakeholders to influence the brand image of the city. Thus, the
following could be considered as the important stakeholders in the city of
Ahmedabad -

1. Residents The residents are the most important section of stakeholder in

the city as their involvement with the city is maximum. They define the
character of the city as a culmination of their character is reflected as the city
character. This group includes, both, native locals who were born and brought
up in Ahmedabad, as well as migrants who have embraced Ahmedabad as
the city to settle for and have moved permanently in the city. This migration
is mostly influenced by work choices and has been recognized as the
residents of the city. A positive city image helps the residents to reinforce
their trust, and take pride in the city and increases their sense of
responsibility in maintain the positive brand image of the city.

2. Investors This group of stakeholders include the investors in the city who
are associated with the city for economic gains. This section may or may not
live in Ahmedabad but derive their source of income from the city. Since
Vaniyas constitute the majority of the population of Ahmedabad, business
remains at the heart of the city life. The city developed as a trade centre
even in the British era. The entrepreneurs like Ranchhodlal Chhotalal in 19 th
century ensured in making the city a hub of industrial development by
establishing textile mills. This has continued even till 21 st century with
Reliance, Adani and Tata setting up industries near Ahmedabad. Apart from
 business giants, small traders from within the state derive business from the
city. The title of Manchester of East is based on textile mills concentration in
Ahmedabad, other industries being pharmaceutical, automobile and precious
jewels. The city has also been the centre for business conclaves, industry
meets and various exhibitions attracting both intra as well as inter-state
movement. Thus, the trading community associated with the investments in
the city becomes an important stakeholder in the branding process.

3. Students The student community in the city of Ahmedabad derives its origin
from the esteemed IIM which has attracted the best brains of the country
since its inception. The city has evolved as the educational hub of the state
with growth of institutes like NID,BJMC, CEPT, GLSLC, EDI, MICA, NIRMA and
various others. These institutes attract students from across the country and
help in strengthening the cosmopolitan culture in the city. These students
come and spend 2-5 years of their youth in the city of Ahmedabad and thus
become equally important stakeholder in the city branding exercise.

4. Tourists Tourism is promoted in Gujarat via campaign initiatives like

Khushboo Gujarat ki which have promoted all aspects of life in Gujarat.
Ahmedabad receives tourist all year round, who can be categorized as
Pilgrimage Tourists who visit Ahmedabad for Rathh Yatra and Tajia on the last
day of Moharram. These tourists are involved with the infrastructure in the
city at an emotional level; Festival Tourism These include tourists visiting to
celebrate festivals like Uttrayan, Navratri in the city; Heritage Tourism- These
include tourists who wish to indulge in the history and architecture of the city
which includes highlights like, Adalaj Step well, Sidi Syed, Jama Masjid,
Bhadra Fort and various other monuments. Recently, with Ahmedabad
hosting the Kabaddi World Championship the city saw influx of sports tourists
and also hosted the players from across the world for the duration of the
championship. Thus tourists are important stakeholders in creating a brand
image for the city.

5. NRI Diaspora The Diaspora constitutes a miniscule population of the city of

Ahmeadabad but yet remains an important one. These NRIs have set up
bases even in the city and visit annually to shop, invest and immerse in the
Indian culture they miss overseas. The citys image directly impacts their
choice of location, amount of investment and emotional connect with their
native city.

The diverse components important to the citys literature need validation from its
stakeholders. This paper attempts to narrow the essential components in
developing Ahmedabad as a brand. The following questions should be answered to
understand the linkage between the above two sections
1. What is the tangible/visual characteristic of Ahmedabad?
 2. What features of Ahmedabad benefit the stakeholders?
3. What is the essential nature and character of the city?

Research Methodology

The paper aims to find the factors essential for Ahmedabads branding. In order to
explore the variables a series of Qualitative approaches shall be applied for the
study. These would include-

Study 1: Case Analysis

This method would use case studies from different sources that throw light on the
process, execution and impact of city branding. The cases would be analyzed and
discussed with stakeholders and experts to understand their views. These cases
would be analyzed in depth to form word associations and identify the common
variables used in branding of destinations. The success stories would be studied in
further to detail to measure the impact on perception and business after branding
exercise.

CASES

STB has six categories to the survey: (1) Awareness, (2) Correct Associations, (3)
Perception level of those who are aware and those who are not aware of the slogan,
(4) Resulting impact on all other brand health measures, (5) Comparison of 45
slogan scores against main competitors, (6) Evaluation of results versus the specific
measures of what Uniquely Singapore represents.

Study 2: In depth Interviews with Stakeholders

The second part of the study would be to interview the stakeholders local
residents, government authorities, tourists as mentioned above, would discuss their
views about Ahmedabad as a city. This would help in identifying the variables that
affect the perception of the place and would yield the important base for creation of
marketing and branding plan.

The technique of Snowball Sampling would be applied for the same, as accessibility
to such a niche group would require referential support. The interviews would
attempt to understand the experts opinion on the factors that influence the
perception of place in the minds of consumers. It would try and extract their views
on success and failure stories in the past.