Is it still Cultural Appropriation if the brands are created by the marginalised? Cultural repurposing, minor literature and iconoclastic branding

Cultural appropriation research often focuses on the impact of exchange
imbalances between different cultures. This article focuses on the impact
of cultural exchange for marginalised cultures not as the appropriated
culture but as the appropriator. It does so by introducing the concept
of cultural repurposing, structured through Deleuze and Guattari’s
notion of minor literature. Cultural repurposing is applied to
reconceptualise cultural exchange, identifying opportunities for
branding and innovation derived from an entrepreneur’s marginalised
heritage and applied to transform appropriated commodities and
consumer goods of “mainstream” origin. Contemporary examples of
such branding are used to highlight instances in which narratives
derived from a cultural heritage that is often the source of
marginalisation enable such brands to compete with established and
iconic brands. These narratives illustrate that cultural repurposing
strategies are able to generate a new branding category: iconoclastic
brands, with implications for consumer engagement with commodities,
and cross-cultural storytelling.