I didn’t say brands didn’t exist. I said brand identity wasn’t as strong. Those are vastly different things. In this modern world NASCAR fans buy the replica of their favorite drivers car at the beginning of the season to look at all his sponsors and change their shopping habits. What brands we buy has become a major part of our own identity now.
Not to mention the stuff that became so ubiquitous we don’t even remember its branding. Look up Santa in history. The image of Santa changed constantly and regularly for centuries. All the way up until 1931. What happened in 1931? The first Coca Cola ad with Santa. Our image of Santa hasn’t changed one bit since. Almost a century. First time in 700 years Santa hasn’t morphed in some way every 30 years or so. Consumer Culture.
The article is spot on. Consumer is huge, and did not exist until Madison Ave. These are well known well proven facts.
The economy depends on a big supply of stupid people.