Nobody's favourite by announcement

A delivery van in Jeddah carries a line along its side, in letters a foot high, calling what it sells the city's favourite kunafa.

It might be the most sold. It might be the easiest to find, the most consistent, the best value for a crowd. Those are real achievements and plenty of businesses would be glad of them.

But ask anyone in Jeddah about their favourite and listen. They talk about a corner near a grandparent's old house in Al Balad. A tray an aunt brings out at family gatherings. The shop their father stopped at on the way home on Thursday nights, which may not even be open any more. Favourites come with a person and a place attached. They are specific and personal, and they do not add up into a league table.

Favourite is not a superlative of popular. It is a different thing altogether. Popular means a lot of people chose it. Favourite means someone would feel the loss if it disappeared.

When a brand sets out to be loved by everybody, it usually sands off the very edges that would have made somebody love it. It becomes easier to like and harder to miss.

I suspect the better ambition is the smaller one: to be the thing a particular group of people would go out of their way for. It is a narrower target. I suspect it is also the more satisfying one to hit.