City Branding

In the 21st century, fashion is a significant part of the creative industries and an important contributor to the economical development of cities. Moreover, the projected reputation as a fashion capital is strongly related to the potential benefits of cultural and educational tourism, increase in investment and prestige of a city. The idea of the fashion city is multidimensional, and it is difficult to present the key characteristics by which a fashion capital can be defined. The multidimensionality of the concept leaves it open for interpretation and development of specific sources of competitive advantage in this area. In fact, in many world fashion cities, public authorities have begun to give increasing significance to their own place positioning in a global hierarchical structure of fashion cities, aspiring to become number one - the fashion capital of the world (Gilbert, 2006). City boosters and planners attempt to implement branding strategies in order to enhance a city ‘fashionable’ reputation and contribute to the city’s economical development. In order to do so, they utilize various branding channels, and attempt to shape brand identity into a more recognizable brand image. The purpose of the thesis is to answer the question of what is the relationship between Milan’s anticipated identity as a world fashion city and the image of the city as fashion capital among international students (education tourists). In order to examine the effectiveness of shaping urban identity into city’s image various branding attempts initiated by the Milan City Administration will be analyzed. Among the researched branding channels are promotional events linked to fashion like Milan Fashion Week, fashion fairs, artistic and cultural events linked to fashion open to the wider public, existence of internationally renowned fashion brands and specialized retail districts.