ABSTRACT
Creating a 'Cornish Brand' is just one of the exercises occurring in Cornwall at present, as part of the reshaping of the lagging Cornish economy. As Jim Dunne of the Dublin based Identity Business has argued in relation to Ireland, countries, as well as companies, need to be very clear about the messages they give about who they are, where they are going, and the type of visitor and investor they want to attract. In the case of Ireland, Dunne identified a number of somewhat 'mixed messages' that in the past have contributed to a perhaps confused Visual Ireland' (Dunne 1997). He noted in particular contradictions about 'traditional' and 'modern' Ireland that featured prominently in images of the country in both tourist and in economic strategy documents. Dunne spotted a potential problem: Who wants to pursue high tech investments in a country apparently filled with rustic peasants? Luckily, Ireland has overcome any contradictions in these perceptions to become a fast paced, modern, successful economy. Cornwall, however, is at the very beginning of facing these challenges, and it, too, is sending contradictory messages.
