ComfortDelGro to review rebranded 'Z' logo on app commonly associated with Russia invasion

ComfortDelGro will review the "Z" logo on its recently rebranded mobile app, following feedback that "Z" is a pro-war symbol of President Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

ComfortDelGro posted a statement on its Facebook page, acknowledging that the letter "Z" has also been used by the Russian army on its tanks during the Ukrainian invasion. "We acknowledge that the timing of the app relaunch comes on the heels of the ongoing war and may have come across as insensitive. We would like to apologise if we have offended anyone. It was certainly not our intent," the brand said. 

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to COmfortDelGro for additional comment. 

Last week, ComfortDelGro relaunched its taxi booking app as CDG Zig, with the app appearing on users’ phones as a stylised “Z” icon. CDG Zig is an amalgamation of ComfortDelGro’s taxi booking app and its now decommissioned lifestyle app Zig, which was integrated with the ComfortDelGro platform last month. The company first alerted consumers about the rebranding through its app and a video teaser on social media channels.

The CDG Zig app will offer users taxi and ride-hailing booking features and lifestyle options such as restaurant reservations, as well as new services such as electric vehicle (EV) charging. According to a press statement, the app will continue to grow with the addition of more ComfortDelGro services from its range of businesses, from car rental to driving lessons. 

Jackson Chia, CEO of ComfortDelGro’s Private Mobility Group, said then that decision to rebrand the app into an all-in-one CDG Zig app was "a step forward" in its strategy to offer customers access to its range of mobility and lifestyle offerings via a unified digital platform. "We have retained our core services such as taxi booking and dining reservation in CDG Zig, and have also added EV charging service as our latest offering as more fleet and vehicle owners switch to EVs," Chia said. EV owners will be able to use the new CDG Zig app to locate and navigate to the nearest available EV charger operated by the Group’s joint venture company, ComfortDelGro Engie. 

ComfortDelGro also has plans to add more of the services under its wing, including private bus, car rental, learner driving and medical transport into the app progressively.

When Zig initially launched as ComforDelGro's standalone lifestyle app, it showcased its sassy personality in a series of ads on Facebook telling Singaporeans not to be boring.

Since the integration, experts MARKETING-INTERACTIVE spoke to said that the rebranding and rebundling of the offers made sense for the brand. However, at the end of the day, for the new entity to really succeed and win customer loyalty it will need to be on at least par with other players technologically while being seen to address the issues of rising prices, driver welfare and vehicle taxi availability that are currently blighting the market in Singapore.

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