Birmingham City University Professor authors new book on brand leadership

Professor Chris Edger has co-authored a new book, ‘Effective Brand Leadership - Be Different. Stay Different. Or Perish!’, which looks at the challenges facing brands in the fast growing, highly competitive food service industry.

The book features 24 case studies, as well as insights from the founders and leaders of emergent and mature brands such as Cabana, Burger & Lobster, Byron, Giraffe, Pizza Hut, TGI Friday’s, Miller & Carter, Domino’s Pizza and Toby Carveries.

The publication provides advice for brand leaders within the food industry - and beyond - on how to stay alive in a cut-throat, increasingly over-populated industry!

Though it is written with industry people in mind, the book will be a valuable tool for hospitality students who want to get real world knowledge on the inner workings of food service brand management.

The book is co-authored by Tony Hughes, Senior Non-Executive Director of the Restaurant Group Plc, a winner of several industry awards who - having invented and developed numerous food brands in Europe - is often described as the 'most important influence on branded food service development in Europe over the past thirty years'.

Chris Edger has published several books relating to service leadership  - his next one out in July 2016 is entitled 'Area Management - Strategic and Local Models for Growth'.

Pre-sale reviews for the book have been outstanding. Paul Charity, editor, managing director and founder of Propel, a leading news and information service for the UK pub, restaurant and foodservice sector, said, "Effective Brand Leadership is an invaluable guide for anyone involved in the food service sector. It breaks new ground in mapping out the architecture of brand creation and the key crucial stages that follow – brand growth and evolution. Its authors Chris Edger and Tony Hughes are uniquely placed to provide this articulation. Chris has latterly distinguished himself as the UK's leading teacher and author on the subject of multi-site leadership, whilst Tony Hughes is often cited as the most influential brand architect of his generation."

The book was released on 15 February 2016. Professor Chris Edger leads Birmingham City University’s Academy of Multi-Unit Leadership.