Oat with the old, in with the new: Oatly’s creative trademarks, branding and controversial advertising campaigns

Abstract

In modern times brands matter, and understandably so as they have become a staple of business theory and practice and are a defining feature of the modern economy. Big names are all well aware of the power and value that their brands hold. Oatly, the Swedish company, is now one of the biggest names in the plant-based industry, but its road to success has been a somewhat unconventional one. Much can be learned from Oatly’s rise to success, especially in relation to their utilisation of trademarks, branding and controversial advertising campaigns. This paper will provide an overview of Oatly’s growth as a business and brand and critically examine Oatly’s controversial battles with the Swedish dairy lobby, and how, ultimately, through a creative use of both trademarks and advertising campaigns, Oatly was able to proactively defend against the powerful and influential dairy lobby. From here, this paper will argue that one the important factors underlying Oatly’s success was the creation of a fundamental, emotional connection between the consumer and the company by successfully implementing a form of brand activism. This paper argues that the fact that trademarks are a means of source identification for a specific brand can be used to protect the consumer while advancing the causes of environmentalism and sustainability.