Made in Portugal:
Brands and Appellations of Origin, between the local and the global
This project aims to analyse the uses and the legal and conceptual evolution of brands and designations of origin as elements of identity and creation of value in a diachronicperspective, traversing a number of Portuguese economy’s sectors. Considering the international bibliography in this field, the analysis of the Portuguese case may bring importantconclusions to the global perspective, given its distinguishing aspects: the longevity of corporate craftsmen models; an active role of national merchants and commercial companiesin the construction of a global market in the Early Modern Period; the “pioneering spirit” shown by the structuring of the first viticulture appellation of origin with legal protection inthe 18th century; an active role of the Portuguese state in building the principles of international regulation of commercial brands, and of protection of designations of origin.Following on from previous and ongoing work, this project will centre around four strands of research: i) Study of corporative marks in the Medieval and Early Modern Periodstogether with the marks used by some merchants and commercial companies for prestige and reputation, sometimes associated to designations of origin, thus contributing to theconstruction of a global market; ii) Analysis of the evolution of brands and the designations of origin of three of the most important products of the Portuguese economy, namelywines (especially Port, which saw greater international prominence from the 18th century, and which introduced several elements of the current designations of origin worldwide),canning industry (which gained major relevance from the beginning of the 20th century, making Portugal its leading producer in the world) and textiles (an important sector inPortuguese industrialization in the 19th century and a considerable part of the 20th, whose roots go back to the Middle Ages, when references can already be found for textileproducts with indication of origin); iii) In-depth analyses, both within and traversing sectors, of Portuguese commercial brands between 1883 and 1933, from the database ofnational records; iv) Assessing how the creation of trademarks relates to the appearance of management strategies of a brand’s image, communication and promotion, connected tothe birth of advertisement.
