Introduction

Place branding produces, reproduces, circulates and, perhaps, imposes place imaginaries that affect the lives of real people, reconstructing and reinforcing narratives of power. Such wonderings have provided the motivation and inspiration for this edited volume. It is the intention of both editors and contributors to consider the evident tensions around place branding in an attempt to shed light on them and make them more approachable as political phenomena. And, thus, perhaps identify ways to resolve them. It is for the readers to judge whether this intention is achieved or remains a pretention.