Linköping University | Department of Management and Engineering Master Thesis in Business Administration, 30 credits | Business and Economics Programme and One Year Master Spring 2018 | ISRN-number: LIU-IEI-FIL-A--18/02781--SE Rebranding – A Possibility without Risk? A Case Study of Circle K Lejla Isanovic Olivia Rotkirch Supervisor: Ramsin Yakob Linköping University SE-581 83 Linköping, Sweden +46 013 28 10 00, www.liu.se Preface The four years of Business and Economics Programme and one year of One Year Master, at Linköping University, are reaching an end. Although, new adventures are ahead. We would like to start by acknowledging and thanking our supervisor, Ramsin Yakob, for supporting us throughout our journey. Most importantly, we would like to thank him for believing in us and our achievement. We would also like to thank the following people from Linköping University, professor in marketing Lars Witell, university lecturer Aku Valtakoski and Ph.D. candidate in marketing Hugo Guyader, for supporting us during our research. Additionally, the approval of conducting the interviews at Circle K enabled the completeness of the research. The achievement would not have been possible without the company’s permission. Our family and friends have also been helpful and understanding during the writing of the thesis, which encouraged us to do our best. Last but not least, we would like to thank the students that contributed with constructive critiques for our research during the seminar. Thank you! Linköping University, 2018-05-28 ________________ ________________ Lejla Isanovic Olivia Rotkirch Abstract Title Rebranding - A Possibility without Risk? A Case Study of Circle K Authors Lejla Isanovic and Olivia Rotkirch Supervisor Ramsin Yakob Background The number of acquisitions is continuously increasing and they are often an important source for competitive advantage. Meanwhile, acquisitions can be a hazardous investment and many do not succeed in creating the expected value. When seeking value creation, corporations can occasionally rebrand in the company. However, the challenges associated with corporate rebranding are sometimes inevitable. Therefore, a developed understanding of the challenges associated with corporate rebranding is required by investigation. Purpose The purpose of the research is to investigate the corporate rebranding, from the aspect of customer satisfaction, brand equity and customer mindset. Moreover, the relationship between customer satisfaction, customer loyalty and brand equity will be examined. Execution A quantitative research method is applied where empirical data is collected through structured interviews with customers of Circle K. The findings will be utilised for the data interpretation and analysis, as well as for the conclusion of the research. Conclusion Rebranding does not result into a negative customer mindset or brand equity. However, the research shows that the rebranding has a positive influence on the customer satisfaction, and that there is a positive relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty. In turn, the customer loyalty is proven to affect the brand equity positively. The customer satisfaction of the new brand decreased compared to the original brand. Conversely, the difference in customer loyalty between the original and new brand cannot be proven and therefore there is no negative connection between loyalty to the original brand and loyalty to the new brand. Keywords Branding, acquisition, rebranding, customer mindset, customer loyalty, brand equity, customer satisfaction. List of Figures Figure 1: Hypotheses model. Own construct. Figure 2: The research process. Own construct. Figure 3: Bootstrapping Path model. Retrieved at SmartPLS. List of Tables Table 1: P-values of paths. Retrieved model at SmartPLS. Table 2: T-test. Own construct. Table 3: AVE. Retrieved at SmartPLS. Table 4: HTMT. Retrieved at SmartPLS. Table 5: Composite reliability. Retrieved at SmartPLS. Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................. 1 1.1 BACKGROUND ........................................................................................................................ 1 1.2 PROBLEM DISCUSSION ............................................................................................................. 2 1.2.1 Occasion and Context .................................................................................................. 2 1.2.2 Relevance .................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 PURPOSE ............................................................................................................................... 4 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS ............................................................................................................. 4 1.5 LIMITATIONS .......................................................................................................................... 5 2. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK .............................................................................................. 7 2.1 BRANDING ............................................................................................................................. 7 2.2 ACQUISITIONS ........................................................................................................................ 8 2.3 CORPORATE COMMUNICATION ................................................................................................. 8 2.4 REBRANDING IN ACQUISITION CONTEXT ...................................................................................... 9 2.5 CUSTOMER MINDSET AND EVALUATION WHEN REBRANDING ......................................................... 9 2.6 CUSTOMER LOYALTY .............................................................................................................. 10 2.6.1 Customer Attachment and Relationship .................................................................... 10 2.7 BRAND EQUITY WHEN REBRANDING ......................................................................................... 12 2.8 CUSTOMER SATISFACTION WHEN REBRANDING .......................................................................... 13 2.9 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE CONCEPTS ............................................................................. 15 2.9.1 Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty ............................................................................ 15 2.9.2 Customer Loyalty and Brand Equity .......................................................................... 16 3. SCIENTIFIC APPROACH ................................................................................................. 19 3.1 THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RESEARCH ................................................................................. 19 3.2 CONFIGURATION ................................................................................................................... 20 3.2.1 Research StrateGy ...................................................................................................... 20 3.2.2 Research Perspective ................................................................................................. 22 3.2.3 Research DesiGn ........................................................................................................ 23 3.2.4 The Case .................................................................................................................... 24 3.3 DATA GENERATION ............................................................................................................... 25 3.3.1 Secondary Data ......................................................................................................... 25 3.3.2 Primary Data ............................................................................................................. 25 3.3.3 Structured Interviews ................................................................................................ 27 3.3.4 Critiques ..................................................................................................................... 31 3.4 DATA INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS ...................................................................................... 32 3.4.1 SmartPLS .................................................................................................................... 32 3.4.2 Reverse CodinG .......................................................................................................... 33 3.4.3 Path Coefficients and Outer LoadinGs ....................................................................... 34 3.4.4 P-values and Hypothesis TestinG ............................................................................... 34 3.4.5 T-test ......................................................................................................................... 35 3.5 VALIDITY, RELIABILITY, GENERALISABILITY AND TRANSFERABILITY .................................................. 35 3.5.1 Validity ....................................................................................................................... 36 3.5.2 Reliability ................................................................................................................... 37 3.5.3 Generalisability .......................................................................................................... 38 3.5.4 Transferability