Criticism of Brand Marketing (1920–1946)

The early 1900s advocates in the consumer movement criticized brand marketing for its large amount of advertising leading to higher prices and its lack of transparency concerning product information regarding attributes and performance. This led economists to study both the imperfect competition caused by brand marketing and the economic effects of advertising. The Federal Trade Commission was established in 1914. While it did not attack brand marketing directly at this time, it, as well as the Food & Drug Administration, did pursue companies that used misleading brand names and occasionally required information that was needed by consumers to make informed product choices.