Between Recognition and Exoticisation via Marketing Practices and Market Structures: The Case of Roma in Romania

This paper illustrates how marketing scholarship, seldom explored in Romani Studies, can provide a lens for understanding the realities of Roma as marketplace consumers. It integrates a critical review of ethnic marketing studies with evidence from secondary data produced in Romania. Viewed through a marketing mix lens, findings show how marketing practices and market structures contribute to the marginalisation and exoticization of Roma. The paper’s contribution is twofold: (1) it indicates areas for future academic and managerial work aimed at more inclusive marketing practices to benefit all consumers in a multicultural marketplace, including Roma; (2) it demonstrates the value of interdisciplinary work for marketing and Romani Studies.