Trajectories of brand hate

Taking inspiration from the work of Langner et al. (2016), this paper explores how the feeling of brand hate develops over time. To that aim, the paper conducts a series of qualitative interviews during which participants are asked to graphically trace the course of their feelings towards their most currently hated brand. In doing so, the paper identifies five types of trajectories of brand hate: “Negative all the way”, “Down-up”, “Downward slope flattens”, “Roller coaster”, and “Steady decrease”. Moreover, it identifies the most common antecedents (i.e. negative past experience with the brand, corporate wrongdoing, and image incongruence) and outcomes of brand hate and relates them to the trajectories previously identified. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.