Guest editorial: Deglobalization challenges and global branding strategies

Abstract

Globalization, as the process of interaction and integration among people, companies and governments worldwide, describes how trade and technology have made the world into a more connected and interdependent place. Globalization transmits managerial practices, advanced technologies and labor skills across borders (Godsell et al., 2023). In the globalized economy, global branding facilitates the general marketing strategy of multinational enterprises in Western developed countries to occupy the global market and, at meantime, help multinational corporations from emerging markets to enter the global market (He and Wang, 2017). In the past 30 years, the research of global branding theory has achieved spectacular achievements (e.g. Alden et al., 1999; He et al., 2021; Kumar and Steenkamp, 2013; Wang et al., 2012).While the advancement of global branding knowledge exerts important impacts on international business and brand globalization with theoretical and managerial insights, the theoretical edifice is facing the new challenges in global macro environment due to a trend towards deglobalization (Witt et al., 2023). Deglobalization, driven by social, economic and political factors, such as the global financial crisis, climate change, international security and the recent COVID-19 pandemic and wars, poses a significant impact on consumer behavior, marketing practices and branding strategies (Cho et al., 2022; Kannan and Kulkarni, 2022; Sheth, 2022; Song et al., 2025). Deglobalization prompts managers of multinational enterprises to increasingly weight the political and social factors when evaluating foreign investment and global marketing strategies, especially under the influence of digital technology (Baines et al., 2022; Nambisan and Luo, 2021). Deglobalization has emerged as a strategic imperative to resolve domestic concerns, but it also restricts economic growth and hinders the development of emerging economies, resulting in higher prices for consumers, which leads to potential inflation. Companies are diversifying supply chains and relocating business closer to home, reducing international trade and cross-border investment.Deglobalization not only affects the world economic order, international trade and business exchanges, technology trade and national competition patterns (Witt et al., 2023) but also affects the way we perceive and think about the world today and imagine the future. Facing such a trend towards deglobalization, including trade, social, technological, cultural and political dimensions, does global branding still follow the logic and experience of the past? This special issue, composed of eight articles (as discussed in the following), addresses the aforementioned issues with both theoretical conceptualization and empirical findings that advance theoretical contributions, actionable insights and future research directions (Wang, 2025a, b).Deglobalization calls for a revisit of established global branding theory (Steenkamp et al., 2003). In their conceptual development, Huang et al. (2026) (Navigating culture mixing: a framework for global brand legitimacy in an era of deglobalization) discuss how global brands navigate culture mixing to build and sustain legitimacy in response to the market shift from globalization to deglobalization by integrating the legitimation process perspective and the polyculturalist paradigm. Their research introduces a dual-lens framework integrating host country institutional sensitivity and brand cultural symbolism. Their conceptual framework advances the legitimation process perspective by contextualizing it within a deglobalized market logic and reframing culture mixing as a long-term legitimacy-building strategy, balancing global-local tensions and achieving sustained legitimacy in volatile environments.Acknowledging the intensified environmental uncertainty due to geopolitical tensions accompanied by the deglobalization process (Smith, 2023), Ye et al. (2026) (Understanding the effects of uncertainty on NPD speed: a temporal perspective) propose increasing the speed of new product development (NPD) as an adaptive strategy to cope with the uncertainty stemming from rapid technology change. The authors find that trade association embeddedness amplifies the effect of market uncertainty on NPD speed while mitigating the effect of technological uncertainty. In contrast, non-public and non-government organization embeddedness mitigates the effect of market uncertainty. The empirical study provides both theoretical insights and practical guidance for firms seeking survive in a rapidly evolving deglobalization context.Multinational corporations should reconfigure their global business and branding strategies to enhance their capabilities in pursuit of sustained advantage in a deglobalization world (Luo and Witt, 2021). Cardy et al. (2026) (Deglobalization and the emergence of confederated communities) look at multinational corporations (MNCs) navigate the tension between centralization and decentralization amidst deglobalization, fueled by rising protectionism across the world. The authors introduce the construct of confederated communities as a microfoundation of dynamic capabilities. The study examines globally active B2B technology companies that operate wholly owned subsidiaries and finds that MNCs increasingly implement confederated communities to rebalance centralized and decentralized structures.Consumer values play a vital role in brand building to establish and maintain brand loyalty (Wang and Yang, 2025). The complex deglobalized environment not only affects business practices but also reshapes consumer values. He and Hu (2026) (Consumer cosmopolitan patriotism: the construct, measurement and managerial implications) propose a new construct of consumer cosmopolitan patriotism (CCOSP), defined as the degree to which consumers integrate cosmopolitanism into patriotism, leading to the coexistence and mutual promotion of both alongside the trend of deglobalization. Their empirical study develops and validates CCOSP consumer with applications in studying consumer values and brand management fields. The findings contribute to theoretical understanding and managerial applications for technology enterprises' brand positioning and product technological elements relating to the contexts of globalization and deglobalization.Considering the impact of deglobalization on branding strategies across the world, Li et al. (2026) (Cultural heritage branding in a deglobalized world: global brand resonance through local cultural events) investigate how cultural heritage brands navigate deglobalization pressures through a hybrid framework that examines integrates physical and digital dimensions. The authors propose the concept of cultural brand resilience and develop a framework that demonstrates how localized authenticity and digital outreach enable heritage brands to thrive amid deglobalization.Consumer emotions forge consumer and brand bond through value co-creation, directly influencing brand attitude (Frau et al., 2023). Moving beyond the established narrative of negative outcomes due to external threats (e.g., trade sanctions) severely damage targeted brands, Hu and Xin (2026) (Consumers' brand attitudes in a deglobalized world: external threats boost attitudes toward local brands through emotional bonding) look at the explore whether, how and when external threats can, counterintuitively, lead to more positive brand attitudes. Their findings unravel that external threats can strengthen emotional bonding leading to consumers exhibiting more positive brand attitudes; however, such effect is negated by a brand's innovation information, suggesting that dissemination of external threats and brand innovation information should be separated into time and space to optimize brand management outcomes.Deglobalization has reshaped our understanding of the traditional marketing concepts. Zeng et al. (2026) (Revisiting consumer ethnocentric tendency amid deglobalization: a political narrative perspective) test a new theoretical framework for ethnocentric consumption, highlighting the influence of political narratives in the age of deglobalization. Building on narrative transportation theory and master narrative engagement research, the authors provide an integrated framework to delineate the distinct pathways through which two pervasive political narratives – patriotic and nationalistic – influence ethnocentric consumption. By conceptualizing political narratives as a driver of consumer ethnocentric tendency, they enriches consumer ethnocentrism and global branding literatures and offer actionable insights for global marketers to design proper branding and advertising strategies amid rising geopolitical risks in the age of deglobalization.Deglobalisation is also challenging traditional trade patterns, with multinational companies increasingly facing boycotts driven by consumer animosity towards countries of origin (Wang et al., 2022). Yin et al. (2026) (Consumer animosity and product perception: significance of perceived domestic alternatives during deglobalisation) examine the effect of Chinese consumer animosity towards Australia on consumer attitudes to and purchase intentions of Australian dairy products. The key findings contribute to the international marketing literature by introducing perceived domestic alternatives into the consumer animosity research and offering practical implications for Australian dairy companies to formulate effective strategies in response to dynamic international relations and consumer sentiments.