Tall, blond, beautiful Oatly : en studie av varumärket Oatlys konstruerade kommunikativa identitet

Due to increased competition between companies and products, brand communication has emerged as an decisive and competitive aspect of a company’s success. Oatly, the swedish oat-based product producer, utilized, through extensive marketing communications, a increased awareness following their well mediated legal dispute with Swedish milk organization” LRF Svensk Mjölk”. While focusing on the brand Oatly, this study aims to examine how brands can take advantage of increased awareness through marketing communications, and develop an understanding regarding how brands can use communication to construct a certain perception of the company. With a qualitative semiotics method we aim to monitor patterns of expression and recurrent communicated characteristics in chosen commercials, adverts and Oatly’s brand manifesto. Our theoretical framework consisted of concepts of brand -management theory as well as theory regarding cultural differences, accompanied by previous research of veganism and companies portrayal as the “underdog”. The results showed that Oatly had an strategic usage of visual elements in the communication. They consistently portrayed themselves as the honest swedish rebell taking a humanistic and environmental responsibility, and Oalty defined itself through the usage of the milk industry as counterpart. With Oatly’s ownership in mind, the study found moral contradictions in the company’s communication regarding transparency and the vegan approach to righteousness. Evidently, the research gave us a profound understanding how perception of a company is abstract and can be constructed through consistent marketing communications.