Heritage Identity Management of the Kente Textile Production: Sustainability Through Preservation

The notion of heritage being considered as a competitive advantage with brands emerged in 2007 where Urde et al. thought it necessary for brands to have an aspect that makes them authentic and distinct from their competition. This thought was explored mainly within corporations and was approached from a corporate marketing perspective. A few years later, corporate heritage identity was birthed with the British monarchy serving as a type of corporate heritage brand to explore and define the different heritage identities that emerge within brands over time to ensure that the brands remain relevant for future generations. As the literature around CHI focuses mainly on organisations, this chapter will focus on a community that functions like an organisation and is defined as a type of hybrid organisation which has heritage identities linked to the production of an indigenous textile which serves as the identity of Ghanaians—the Kente cloth. This chapter is conceptual in nature and will explore how the heritage identity of the Kente production can be managed sustainably through the approach of preservation. The corporate heritage identity management framework would be used to explore what mindset weavers will need to have to successfully preserve the heritage identity(ies) that may be present within the community of Bonwire, as some have already been lost (Nunoo, Sustainable supply chain process of the luxury Kente Textile: Introducing heritage into the Sustainability framework. In: Henninger, CE and Athwal NK (eds) Sustainable luxury: an international perspective. Palgrave, Switzerland, 2022).