Profile
Biography
I joined the School for Business and Society in 2023 as a lecturer in Marketing. I am part of the subject group of People, Operation and Marketing. I hold a master’s degree in International Business from St Andrews University and I was awarded PhD in Brand Management from Northumbria University in 2015. My doctoral research focused on brand management, specifically within the field of employer branding management. I have been a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) since 2016.
I have worked in Higher Education for the past 7 years. I led Postgraduate Business and Management programmes, overseeing the recruitment and management of a variety of PG programmes, including MSc Marketing, MSc International Business, MSc Entrepreneurship and MSc Leadership and Human Resource Management. I co-developed and led the professional programmes, including both UG and PG apprenticeship programmes of CMDA and ex-MBA. Additionally, other managerial role I have taken include chairing the ethics committee at my previous institution. This role involved leading the development and implementation of university research ethics plans and providing guidance and support for ethics submissions from academic staff member.
University roles
Programme Leader for the MSc Global Marketing programme (from April 2025)
Research
Overview
My research interests focus on consumer brand behaviour and the influence of social events on brand behaviours. I look at how consumers establish emotional connections with brands and how these connections are shaped by the shifts in society. This includes situations such as brand reputation crisis and economic downturns that impact consumers’ purchase power. The context of my research spans across luxury brand and charity brand sector.
I welcome collaborations and I am interested in supervising PhD projects related to consumer brand behaviour studies, particularly exploring changes in brand behaviours within uncertainty social contexts.
Publications
Selected publications
Selected publications:
- "It’s all about experiences: the need for uniqueness in luxury consumption." In Consumer Behaviour in Hospitality and Tourism: Contemporary Perspectives and Challenges. Palgrave Pivot. (In Progress)
- In Progress: Ren, C., Moisieiev, D., and Koussaifi, H. (2024) The Magic Lipstick: affordable luxury in the economic recession.
- Ren, C., Moisieiev, D., Rodrigo, P., & Johnson, E. (2024). Hot and cold: How do consumers hate and forgive offending charity brands? Journal of Philanthropy and Marketing, 29(3), e1875. https://doi.org/10.1002/nvsm.1875
Conference Papers and Report
- Ren, C., & Biggins, R. (2019). Millennial’s Need for Uniqueness Luxury Consumption. Academy of Marketing, Regent’s University, London.
- Ren, C., Woodruffe, H. R., Wappling, A. (2015). Building a positive employer brand image to attract job seekers in China. Academy of Marketing, Limerick.
- Biggins, R. & Ren, C. (2016) UK Millennials financial spending on insurance product, a report produced for a collaboration project between York Business School and Hiscox York studying UK millennials perspectives on insurance products.
Teaching
Other teaching
I have been teaching both postgraduate and undergraduates in the areas of marketing and global business in the past 7 years. I have developed and delivered a variety of modules related to marketing and global business, such as: Strategic Brand Management, Marketing Audit, Organisational Strategy, International Business Strategy and Global Business Issue.
Currently I am leading the modules of:
- Marketing Research (1st year)
- Branding Strategies (2nd year)
- Marketing Dissertation (Applied) (PG)
