Is Jaguar 'willfully courting controversy' with its outrageous new rebrand?

Car brand Jaguar has seen its sentiments fall from 23.1% positive and 21% negative to 8% positive and 40.3% negative after it launched a completely reimagined brand refresh, according to media intelligence firm CARMA. 

The rebranding of Jaguar sparked controversy among netizens, with many expressing disappointment or outrage at the updated logo and branding strategy, said a spokesperson at CARMA. 

Criticisms include the perceived "lack of innovation and creativity" in the new design, as well as concerns about the potential impact on the company's identity and values.

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"Some users have expressed frustration with the company's decision-making process and the lack of transparency regarding the changes," said CARMA. 

Jaguar debuted its refreshed brand identity on 19 November looking to recapture the ethos of founder Sir William Lyons to copy nothing, by being unique and original.

Jaguar’s transformation is defined by Exuberant Modernism, a creative philosophy that underpins all aspects of the new Jaguar brand world. It embraces bold designs, unexpected and original thinking, creating a brand character that will command attention through fearless creativity, it said in a statement.

“Jaguar has its roots in originality. Lyons believed that ‘a Jaguar should be a copy of nothing’. Our vision for Jaguar today is informed by this philosophy. New Jaguar is a brand built around Exuberant Modernism. It is imaginative, bold and artistic at every touchpoint. It is unique and fearless." said Gerry McGovern OBE, chief creative officer.

"This is a reimagining that recaptures the essence of Jaguar, returning it to the values that once made it so loved, but making it relevant for a contemporary audience. We are creating Jaguar for the future, restoring its status as a brand that enriches the lives of our clients and the Jaguar community,” added McGovern.

The reimagined Jaguar begins with an all-new brand identity that establishes its unique character, through a dramatic new visual language. Meaning is embedded in each of the four symbols of change, reflecting brand values and providing clues for what is to come.

It is a celebration of modernism – geometric form, symmetry and simplicity – demonstrating the unexpected by seamlessly blending upper and lowercase characters in visual harmony.

This bold linear graphic generates an unmistakeable presence and an immediately recognisable visual for Jaguar, striking through imitation and the ordinary, it said. 

Exuberant use of colour is a cornerstone of Jaguar’s new brand identity, embedded in its values and its association with art. Primary colours, born from the painter’s palette – yellow, red and blue – are the tonal building blocks, always presented with texture or movement.

"Consisting of the newly reimagined Jaguar ‘leaper’ that is our precious mark of provenance. Always leaping forward, it is a representation of excellence and hallmark of the brand. The monogram is a code for expression and a signifier of a completed work. It is used as a flourish or finishing touch," said Jaguar. 

On 3 December 2024, at Miami Art Week, Jaguar will present “Copy Nothing”, the first global public installation for its new brand that will include the physical manifestation of its Exuberant Modernism creative philosophy, in a design vision concept.

“To bring back such a globally renowned brand we had to be fearless. Jaguar was always at its best when challenging convention. That ethos is seen in our new brand identity today and will be further revealed over the coming months. This is a complete reset. Jaguar is transformed to reclaim its originality and inspire a new generation. I am excited for the world to finally see Jaguar,” said Rawdon Glover, managing director, Jaguar.

Since its release, words such as 'woke', 'horrible' and 'awful' have been associated with Jaguar online, according to CARMA.

This is a stark contrast to its word cloud before the rebranding which included words such as 'automotive', 'power' and 'luxury'.

Media intelligence firm Truescope added that the rebrand saw 40.8% mixed sentiments on the rebrand with users questioning the lack of cars in Jaguar’s new advertisement despite being a luxury vehicle company. It can be noted that Elon Musk, founder and owner of Tesla, responded to Jaguar’s post on X by writing “Do you sell cars?”

Jaguar responded in a post saying, "Yes. We'd love to show you. Join us for a cuppa in Miami on 2 December? Warmest regards, Jaguar."

Truescope also identified 37.5% neutral sentiments with users focused on the rebrand itself, with some wondering about the direction of the brand’s identity. 20.8% were negative sentiments with users expressing frustration towards the brand, with some stating that the advertisement seemed “too woke” and that it has nothing to do with cars.

0.9% were positive sentiments that were focused on the more inclusive designs and creative thinking featured in the advertisement.

According to Graham Hitchmough, chief operating officer at The Bonsey Design, any significant change of direction for a revered brand is always likely to put some noses out of joint. However, he said that Jaguar’s "jarring new look" seems to be "willfully courting controversy".

"Jaguar’s business model and product strategy is changing dramatically to keep pace with the industry’s transition to EVs and compete effectively for a new generation of luxury car buyers. In that sense, a jolt to the brand’s core visual motifs is justified," he said. 

Hitchmough added that the newly developed ‘device mark’ and Jaguar ‘leaper’ will not find favour with existing Jaguar fans or traditionalists, but that this is largely the point.

"While a through-line to the heritage of the brand is no doubt important, these ‘symbols of change’ are primarily there to signal where the brand is heading, rather than where it has come from. For a business that must adapt quickly to stay relevant, that may be no bad thing," he said. 

Hitchmough went on to explain that the brand symbols may seem "over-designed", and the language used by Jaguar to introduce them is "definitely overwrought", but after a slew of anodyne logo updates from the auto sector, too much rather than too little makes a refreshing change. And, as always, the full picture will only be revealed once we see how these assets are deployed, across communication and on the vehicles themselves.

"The element of the relaunch that has received the most online condemnation and which appears to be least explicable is the launch film. The absence of an actual car can be forgiven by the fact that this is effectively a teaser for the main product reveal at Miami Art Week in December, and it’s a sad sign of the times that the use of a diverse cast triggers a knee-jerk response from the ‘anti-wokeism’ brigade," said Hitchmough, adding:

For a brand claiming to ‘copy nothing’ and ‘break moulds’, the imagery of the film seems entirely derivative.

With its sci-fi sets and vivid over-the-top styling, it comes across like a Luc Besson fever-dream, said Hitchmough. "If this is the future that Jaguar is driving towards, then it seems neither original nor inspirational. The concept of ‘exuberant modernism’ that the film seeks to embody feels like an internal design brief rather than a brand manifesto that’s likely to turn heads and clock up test-drives."

He added that it may be that the full launch in Miami will reveal more mischief than madness in Jaguar’s approach. Either the brand really is ‘breaking moulds’ with a scorched earth policy to jettison legacy loyalists in favour of an imagined new avant-garde audience, or it is strategically dialling up the ‘artsy’ angle for all its worth to stoke media interest and create buzz around a new brand and product that will ultimately prove to be far more palatable.

Wishful thinking doesn’t make for great marketing strategy

Adding to his point, Ambrish Chaudhry, head of strategy Asia, MSQ and Elmwood said that this has been a humbling year for marketers. From Burberry’s rebound to Nike’s plummeting value and to the recent furore over Jaguar’s rebrand - there are strong reminders that brands exist to facilitate customer aspirations and not the other way around.

"Nike assumed that if they focused on D2C and reduced presence in store, customers followed suit. They were wrong. Burberry assumed that if they wanted to move up the luxury ladder customers would follow suit. They were wrong," he said, adding:

Wishful thinking then, doesn’t make for great marketing strategy.

Chaudhry explained that this is the trap that Jaguar seems to have fallen into. "Fashionably dressed, gyrating GenZs don’t make a brand relevant again," he said. 

He went on to say that the one caveat here is that we don’t really know what Jaguar has coming up next. They could have a truly pathbreaking line up of vehicles and that may justify the risk they’ve taken. They also have two years without products to sell so there’s plenty of time to course correct if needed so this rebrand may well be a justifiable gambit.

"However as for as rebrands go this one gets the fundamentals wrong. The best rejuvenations focus on what is truly unique about the brand and its relationship with customers and amplify that in relevant ways. You would only break away from your heritage if the brand is seriously tainted or if the business were entering a space where the current brand would not have any credibility or be a serious impediment," said Chaudhry.

Chaudhry went on to explain that for Jaguar, as is obvious from the reactions, this just isn’t the case for their entry into electric vehicles. "Yes, newer audiences may gravitate towards them if their vehicles are compelling enough but their storied history, reinterpreted for modern times, would only enhance desirability and not diminish it," he said.

It's never an accident

Meanwhile, Chris Moody, global executive creative director at Landor said that he loves the bold declaration of intent. The deliberate shake down of the past, and clear statement of change. He added:

It's not for everyone, it's not for the existing customer base, that's the point.

Moody went on to explain that its ultimately a more luxury positioning for younger, wealthier and more mosaic global audience, which is where Jaguar need to play to rekindle the desire of their heritage.

"It’s what the branding world needs more of - will the logo look good cast in tin and glued to a car - probably not, will it look cool embossed anodised metal or projected in light - yeah I think it will. It's built for EV not ICE," he said. 

He added that the world needs change but that the internet seems to not like change. Especially when that change comes as a surprise, or from left field. "The reality is that this endeavor is no knee jerk reaction and has likely been in the planning for months if not years. He added:

Before any rebrand is considered a 'mistake' people must understand that this kind of move is never an accident.

"It’s easier to hate something than be nuanced, its simpler think one thing rather than accept the world is made of many often conflicting things," Moody explained. "The idea they just threw this out into the world without thinking is just daft, they've been planning this for years, meticulously."

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