Falling from grace: Family-based brands amidst scandals

Family firms often adopt brand strategies based on their family status to convey messages of ethics and integrity to their external stakeholders. Research has highlighted the positive influence that family-based brands exert on corporate reputation and related organizational outcomes, yet they may become a liability in circumstances of scandals. In this study, we disentangle the complex landscape of scandals in family firms by conceptually developing a typology corroborated with illustrative cases. Moreover, we explore the consequential effects of scandals on family-based brands and possible redressive strategies implemented in the aftermath of scandals outbreaks. While previous work has mainly seen family-based branding as an edge, our study examines its drawbacks under circumstances of scandals and offers a springboard to further develop this line of inquiry.