Branding Sardinia's Holy Week: A challenge to add value to intangible cultural heritage?

Summary of aim: This work is based on an in depth analysis of a specific Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) event taking place in Iglesias (Sardinia, Italy) during the Holy Week. The main aspect of interest of this event is connected with a strong character of authenticity maintained during the Centuries thanks to the attentive engagement of a specific organization named Archconfraternity. The main purpose of this study is to understand if branding would add value to the intangible cultural heritage and, if so, in which way. We will take into consideration the model devised by Apostolakis (2003) which explains the role of authenticity as a powerful marketing tool able to link tourist motivation (demand) with the supply in terms of heritage attraction and its connected destination. Approach: The paper adopts a qualitative approach in order to set a case study (Yin 2009). Archival documents and semi-structured interviews will be collected in order to acquire the necessaries information. Key Arguments: Brand, Intangible Cultural Heritage, Sardinia, Holy Week