Assessing the literature on brand equity: From past, present to future

Background: Brand equity is considered to be one of the most important organizational resources. The history of academic research on brand equity traces back to late 1980s.Until now several contributions have been made from past scholars on this concept from different perspectives.The literature review on this topic reveals that past researchers examined this concept in different country contexts, sectors, and product lines using variety of research methodologies. The focus of research on brand equity has been changing across different decades.Objectives: The objective of this paper was to review the literature on brand equity published since 1990s to date with special focus on various issues relevant to brand equity in different contexts. Conclusion: In 1990s, research focused on the measurement of brand equity, whereas in 2000s the emphasis was shifted towards revealing significant variables as antecedents and consequences of brand equity.In recent years as well, researchers have been focusing on finding new antecedents and consequences of brand equity. The contribution paid by past scholars for this concept is although significant but future research can reveal new perspectives on brand equity using improved research methodologies. There is a host of research on this concept from the quantitative field, but qualitative research can add to this field by employing typical methodologies and designs