There were certainly brands and advertising in the Roman Empire, but I've read books on branding (in the marketing sense) that point to Josiah Wedgwood as more

There were certainly brands and advertising in the Roman Empire, but I've read books on branding (in the marketing sense) that point to Josiah Wedgwood as more or less the inventor of modern (post-Roman Western) brand identity. I think Meatball Sundae, for example, said this.