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Branding in faith-based consumer markets, in which marketing practices, religion, and consumption intersect, is largely unexplored. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how brands integrate religious concerns into their strategies through Halal branding. The central logic of authors’ view is that branding applied in a particular consumer market (i.e., Muslim) could enrich dominant (Western) branding theory.

Although challenging, qualitative research offers a valuable lens in international marketing research in allowing researchers to study organizations and contexts in their natural settings, enabling a more holistic approach, instead of imposing one’s culturally informed pre-conceptions (Boyacigiller and Adler, 1991). In this regard, a multiple case study approach considering Halal cosmetic brands is used. A replication logic is applied in interpreting the data.

Holistic branding is a broader concept than what mainstream theory acknowledges; brand attributes go beyond the functional and emotional, offering insights into a spiritual dimension. The proposed model identifies attributes that reflect the brand’s worldview and contribute to holistic branding: spiritual ethos and belief system, sustainable and eco-ethical philosophy, wholesomeness and inclusiveness.

This exploratory research represents the initial step for faith-based/Halal branding; the discussion is confined to the cases under study. The results are not conclusive and require further empirical research to validate their broader applicability.

The study highlights the need for a comprehensive approach to branding of faith-based products. The Halal market (cosmetics and toiletries) may be attractive to companies that seek to widely develop products targeting faith-based Muslim consumer markets.

The study contributes to an area of growing concern from an academic point of view (i.e. Halal branding) by proposing to add a spiritual dimension to holistic branding. Several questions remain and should stimulate further research. Hence, researchers would be able to understand more clearly the meaning of the religious environment and the impact that environmental forces are likely to exert on business decisions.

Globally, the halal cosmetics market is experiencing rapid growth and is considered a key economic driver in shaping economy development and growth. However, the extant research on halal cosmetics is fragmented, potentially impeding the field’s advancement when challenged with conflicting viewpoints and limited replications. Therefore, this paper aims to address the knowledge gap by conducting a rigorous and technology-enabled systematic review by leveraging appropriate software to comprehensively evaluate the state of the halal cosmetics literature.

A domain-based review using a hybrid approach that incorporates both bibliometric and interpretive analyses are used to comprehensively assess the current progress of halal cosmetics, identify research gaps and suggest potential directions for future research.

Through a comprehensive review of 66 articles, this review provides a holistic and comprehensive overview of halal cosmetics that both academic scholars and market practitioners can rely upon in strategizing and positioning for future development of halal cosmetics. The study provides a holistic and comprehensive overview of halal cosmetics that both academic scholars and market practitioners can reply upon in strategizing and positioning for future development of halal cosmetics.

The fragmented knowledge of extant research on halal cosmetics across various disciplines limits a comprehensive understanding of the field. It is opportune to conduct a comprehensive and systematic review of the field, providing insight into both its current and future progress. In this regard, this review serves as a “one-stop reference” in providing a state-of-the-art understanding of the field, and enables industry practitioners to reveal the full potential and bridge the theory-practice gap in the halal cosmetics industry.

The purpose of this paper is to take the case of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a starting point for the analysis of the blend between the notions of halal and luxury in the Arab region because the UAE presents an interesting multicultural yet Islamic blend, which has yet not been investigated. Scholarly calls for the assessment of the relationship between consumption and wellbeing have raised interest in conspicuous consumption research. The global phenomenon of luxury consumption has drawn researcher interest at recent times. Despite consumer affluence in the oil-rich Arabian Gulf, research into this phenomenon at this emerging region to-date is still lacking. As the Arabian Gulf is also particularly Islamic, a significant body of literature has addressed halal purchasing yet had failed to examine the intersections between luxury and halal consumption.

The research takes a qualitative methodological approach utilizing unstructured observation and content analysis of 138 visuals collected from prominent shopping malls in Dubai and Abu-Dhabi during the occasion of the minor Islamic Eid following Ramadan.

The results show that the UAE consumer culture combines authenticity with modernity portraying highly savvy cosmopolitan consumers sharing the global values of urbanization within the halal parameters.

The limitations relate to the utilization of the qualitative methodological approach; hence, the research findings need to be generalized with caution to relevant contexts. This research should be regarded as a critical starting point in analyzing the syllogisms between the notions of halal and affluence.

The findings are relevant to consumer culture research which looks at the implications of modern consumption within the boundaries of halal. The research presents a critical approach and questioning of the overlaps between halal consumption, responsible consumption and luxury consumption in a unique multicultural and affluent setting which is the UAE.

The present paper invites academics and practitioners to introspect into the dimensions of responsible consumption, luxury consumption and halal consumption. It asks the critical metaphorical question of whether halal and luxury consumption are two faces of the same coin.

The research concludes with raising critical questions around the boundaries of luxury consumption from an Islamic perspective, thereby combining elements of religion and cultural approaches to Islamic marketing.

While service inclusion principles raise the awareness of scholars to service that improves holistic well-being, little research explicitly investigates the spiritual dimensions of service inclusion. This study, therefore, aims to explore faith-based service inclusion in sub-Saharan Africa.

A qualitative case study of the Salvation Army’s Chikankata Services in Zambia was undertaken. Semi-structured interviews with the organization’s leaders and professionals were analyzed thematically.

Service inclusion pillars evince contextualized meaning and priority. In resource-constrained, vulnerable communities, faith-based service inclusion prioritizes two additional pillars – “fostering eudaimonic well-being” and “giving hope,” where existence is precarious, fostering (hedonic) happiness is of low priority. Findings reveal that pillars and processes are mutually reinforcing, harnessed by the individual and collective agency to realize transformative outcomes from service inclusion.

This paper provides unique insight into faith-based service inclusion but acknowledges limitations and areas warranting further research.

The study yields important managerial implications. Service providers can use the framework to identify the contextual priority and/or meaning of service inclusion pillars and relevant reciprocal processes. The framework emphasizes the harnessing potential of individual agency and capability development for transformative well-being.

Faith-based service inclusion, predicated on inclusion, human dignity and holistic well-being, has important implications for reducing the burden on scarce resources while building resilience in communities.

By examining a faith-based service in sub-Saharan Africa, this paper provides a holistic framework conceptualizing pillars, processes, agency and outcomes to extend Fisk et al.’s (2018) service inclusion pillars and to better understand the shaping of service delivery for service inclusion.

A careful study demonstrates that President Bush has implemented the faith-based initiative as a method of governmentality, one which appears to be biased toward Christianity. This paper examines the definition of Foucaultʼs governmentality as it relates to the ever-expanding structure of contemporary American governance and justifies the categorization of faith-based initiatives as an example of pastoral power. Ultimately, these arguments characterize the current state of governmentality as “born-again,” and call specific attention to what appears to be a strong affiliation of “charitable choice” with evangelical Christianity. By relying on evangelical Christianity to govern, the pastoral-panopticon coupled with governmental resources has brought back an older method of regulation which is less obvious in its intrusion, and more dangerous for it.

The purpose of this paper is to argue that “being Islamic” is already embedded in the decision frame of the Muslim consumers when choosing their Islamic banks, and hence, the bank selection criteria of these Muslim consumers will be dominated by non-faith-based factors.

This study took the context of retail consumers of Islamic banks of Bangladesh—the fourth largest Muslim populated country in the world, having great potential of developing an Islamic ecosystem. The study employed survey method using structured questionnaire on 311 respondents from 35 branches of six Islamic banks in Dhaka—the capital city of Bangladesh. Exploratory factor analysis, followed by multivariate regression analysis, was conducted to identify the determinants of satisfaction among Muslim retail bank customers.

The study forwards three important findings. First, faith-based bank selection criterion (i.e. Islam) is not a stand-alone factor anymore; rather, the items of this factor are embedded into other non-faith-based factors. Second, among the non-faith-based factors, commitment of the bank, competence and compassion of the bank employees have topped the list of bank selection criteria. Third, competence, commitment and corporate image of the bank had relatively more influence on satisfaction when compared to compassion and convenience.

Since Shari’ah compliance is already embedded in Islamic banking system, Islamic bankers should now focus on strategic targeting of their customers based on non-faith-based operational determinants.

This study presents that non-faith-based selection criteria are more influential in Islamic bank selection decision.

For more than 40 years, researchers have examined an exhaustive set of attributes as price determinants in tourism and hospitality. In extending this rich research stream, this study aims to propose and empirically assess a new set of hotel attributes, namely, faith-based attributes that allow tourists to continue following the activities and rituals guided by their religions while on vacation.

Using the Bayesian quantile regression for the first time in the field of hotel pricing, the hedonic pricing models examine both internal and external faith-based attributes, namely, halal services, which cater to the needs of Muslim tourists, in a sample of 805 hotels across the top three non-Muslim country destinations (Singapore, Thailand and Japan).

By exploring the effects of faith-based (halal) attributes available in hotels located in the biggest cities of the above-mentioned destinations, this study provides evidence for the significant role of faith-based (halal) attributes in determining hospitality prices.

This study’s findings offer a resource for several implications for tourism and hospitality scholars, practitioners and policymakers, especially within the field of Muslim/halal tourism, to develop action plans and strategies.

This study is the first to introduce a novel set of faith-based hospitality attributes and empirically assess their impact on hospitality price formation. Additionally, it contributes to the hedonic pricing method by being the first to use the Bayesian quantile regression.

Purpose: Ethical investing is considered to be the pinnacle of embedding environmental considerations in investing. Environmental considerations form a major part of corporate social responsibility (CSR), and CSR is considered to have a positive effect on investment returns. The purpose of this chapter is to assess the degree of environmental considerations embedded in faith-based funds investment criteria. The comparative analysis between principles and practice through faith-based investing is undertaken.

Design/Methodology: Prospectuses of selected faith-based mutual funds and other information around investment strategies provided on the Funds’ websites have been analyzed in detail. Content analysis has been undertaken in order to evaluate the existence and types of environmental related criteria demonstrated by the Funds. The criteria are compared to the faith principles on environmental responsibility.

Findings: It is generally assumed that CSR requirements form the premise of socially responsible investing. The authors find that faith-based investing criteria are narrowly defined and that they represent biases which do not promote environmentally responsible investing.

Implications: The major implication is that inspite of the availability of faith-based environmental responsibility principles, faith-based funds represent a case of economic returns prioritization over environmental considerations. Environment accountability principles that exist need to be promoted regularly so that they become an essential element of every day decision-making including faith-based economic decision-making.

Originality: This study contributes to the debate on ethical investing from the perspective of faith-based mutual funds.

Charitable Choice Policy, the heart of President Bush’s Faith‐Based Initiative, is the direct government funding of religious organizations for the purpose of carrying out government programs. The Bush presidential administration has called for the application of Charitable Choice Policy to all kinds of social services. Advocates for child‐abuse victims contend that the Bush Charitable Choice Policy would further dismantle essential social services provided to abused children. Others have argued Charitable Choice Policy is unconstitutional because it crosses the boundary separating church and state. Rather than drastically altering the US social‐policy landscape, this paper demonstrates that the Bush Charitable Choice Policy already is in place for childabuse services across many of the fifty states. One reason this phenomenon is ignored is due to the reliance on the public‐private dichotomy for studying social policies and services. This paper contends that relying on the public‐private dichotomy leads researchers to overlook important configurations of actors and institutions that provide services to abused children. It offers an alternate framework to the public‐private dichotomy useful for the analysis of social policy in general and, in particular, Charitable Choice Policy affecting services to abused children. Employing a new methodological approach, fuzzy‐sets analysis, demonstrates the degree to which social services for abused children match ideal types. It suggests relationships between religious organizations and governments are essential to the provision of services to abused children in the United States. Given the direction in which the Bush Charitable Choice Policy will push social‐policy programs, scholars should ask whether abused children will be placed in circumstances that other social groups will not and why.

International restaurant and fast food chains such as KFC, McDonald’s and Subway currently serve halal food in some non-Muslim countries, with mixed results. The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors that most influence the product judgements of halal food amongst non-Muslim consumers in non-Muslim countries and to assess the extent to which these judgements are related to willingness to consume halal food.

A quantitative survey method was adopted, using a total sample of 1,100 consumers in Canada, Spain and the UK. The proposed model was tested using structural equation modelling.

The results suggest that it may be possible for firms to satisfy specific niche market segments with standardised mass market products. Consumer cosmopolitanism and non-Muslim religious identity were found to be positively related to halal product judgement, and consumer ethnocentrism and national identification were negatively related to halal product judgement. There was a strong relationship between product judgement and willingness to consume halal food.

The findings indicate that halal marketing may provide promising business opportunities for international restaurant and fast food chains, as well as food manufacturers and retailers. However, in countries or regions where there are many consumers with high levels of national identification or consumer ethnocentrism, firms should not expect non-target consumers to accept halal products.

This is the first study to suggest that, in non-Muslim countries, food companies may switch entirely to halal produce for certain products as an effective market segmentation strategy targeting Muslim consumers.