Marketing as Culture: an Applied Anthropological Study of Esteh Indonesia’s Franchise Business Strategy

Franchise expansion in Indonesia’s beverage sector has facilitated the dissemination of standardized business models across various cultural contexts in Indonesia. Nonetheless, everyday practices through which cultural differences are negotiated in franchise marketing remain under-theorized. Utilizing the perspective of business anthropology, which views culture as practice and meaning-making, this qualitative case study investigates the development, socialization, and enactment of marketing strategies at Esteh Kebun Perintis Kemerdekaan (Makassar) and examines how these micro-processes influence the sales performance and customer loyalty. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 13 informants of different backgrounds, and supplemented with company documents and media sources. Through thematic analysis, we explored the transformation of strategic ideas into routines via internal communication, service meetings and training modules. The findings indicate that marketing functions as a culturally embedded practice, where socio-cultural differences are treated as dynamic interactional realities that shape service encounters and promotional decisions rather than as static segmentation categories. This strategy is maintained through ongoing internal discussions and standardized online training, ensuring consistent brand coherence while permitting localized reinterpretation that fosters trust and shared meanings with customers. This negotiated balance between standardization and local relevance contributes to increased consumer trust and higher food industry sales. The study advances applied business anthropology by elucidating how organizational culture serves as an operational guide that stabilizes frontline practice, mediates cultural differences, and supports growth in competitive franchising.