Commentary: do brands compete or coexist?: By Sheth and Koschmann. From brand to subcategory competition

PurposeA response to Sheth and Koschmann’s Do brands compete or coexist? How persistence of brand loyalty segments the market.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is a comment piece written in response to Sheth and Koschmann’s “Do brands compete or coexist? How persistence of brand loyalty segments the market”.FindingsIn their article, Sheth and Koschmann’s position on brand competition reinforces the view that vigorous and costly competitive initiative designed to lure customers from one brand to another are futile in nature. Brand loyalty is too high. This note outlines that the only way to grow a business is to create “must haves” that define subcategories, manage these subcategories to success and build structural barriers to inhibit competition from gaining relevance. A firm’s focus on maintaining existing customers is a sound investment, but attempting to seek growth through attracting customers of competitors will not create growth.Originality/valueThis response to Sheth and Koschmann’s paper provides a scholarly dialogue centered upon the premise of brand loyalty within the context of market competition.