Potentials and risks of rebranding

Recently, the British multinational car manufacturer Jaguar undertook a controversial rebranding initiative, focusing on electric vehicles and revisiting its historic logo. The new branding will feature the brand name "Jaguar" (or rather, "JR") in a simplified design and new font. What are the reasons behind this strategy? Prof. Luca Visconti, a professor at the Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society at Università della Svizzera italiana (USI), discussed this in an interview published in 20 Minuten.

"I imagine that the need for brand repositioning is linked to the negative sales trend", explained Professor Luca Visconti. "Based on the strategic choices made by Jaguar, it seems possible to conclude that the company attributes the commercial decline not so much to product problems as to a fragility in brand identity and positioning".

A rebranding effort like the one undertaken by Jaguar does more than just change the way people remember the brand; it also redefines its symbolic heritage and core values. This process carries inherent risks, and it has certainly faced its share of criticism. Moreover, if "the loss of historical customers is possible, and even probable, there is no certainty of attracting new customers".

Some have seen in Jaguar's new image a desire to make the brand more "woke" a term that is commonly used to refer to those who are alert to social injustice. "I don't know if I would go so far as to say that the new brand strategy is aimed at making the brand "woke". Indeed, it remains to be seen whether the idea of dialogue with minorities, subcultures and countercultures will remain at the heart of Jaguar's new identity", commented Professor Visconti.

The full interview with Professor Luca Visconti, edited by Jan Janssen for 20 Minuten, is available at the following link (German only).