ith Audi in China and Jaguar's global rebranding, we are currently observing how established brands are reacting to weakening sales by radically breaking with their tradition.
For this reason, we looked at the risks car manufacturers are taking with such a move and analyzed how other manufacturers are dealing with their heritage and incorporating it into brand names, communication and product design. Although heritage is generally an opportunity, it can also be a burden in some situations. The decisive factor is how the public and, above all, target customers perceive this.
In a very short time, we have seen two manufacturers in the automotive market turn their backs on parts of their brand and history and redefine them in an unusually radical way.
In November 2024, Jaguar launched a widely publicized rebranding: The font was fundamentally modernized and the classic visual Jaguar logos, the leaper and the growler, were swapped for a monogram – a development that has also been observable at numerous fashion brands in recent years. Jaguar seems to want to detach itself completely from its heritage. In the media, this approach has been received very critically.
Concrete plans from Audi also envisage a break with brand tradition: The German manufacturer has developed a sub-brand specifically for the Chinese market. Although it is called AUDI, it dispenses with the traditional four rings. The products that AUDI will sell under this brand from 2025 will be developed by Chinese partner SAIC and produced locally – a radical shift in value creation. By abandoning the four rings, AUDI is attempting to preserve its brand essence of Vorsprung durch Technik. This core should not be directly associated with the vehicles developed by SAIC. At the same time, they are consciously setting aside this claim in order to be able to reposition themselves as a brand in the Chinese market. A radical step, but one which is not only met with skepticism.
These examples illustrate that the topic of heritage can certainly be a burden for car manufacturers steeped in history. In critical situations, for example when sales figures plummet, there can be good arguments for turning away from (large) parts of its history.
Both brands see their future viability at risk: both Jaguar and Audi have been fighting – globally and especially in China – against a dramatic decline in sales for years. Jaguar’s market share has disastrously collapsed from a good two percent in the early 2010s to just 0.08 percent. Audi recorded a double-digit percentage drop in sales in China last year. The radical rebranding (coupled with a new vehicle substance) is intended to stop the downward trend, or at best reverse it, and shows that both manufacturers see their history as a burden rather than an opportunity – in the case of Audi, only in China for the time being. The change in brand image is the visible expression of a manufacturer’s turnaround for every customer. The aim is to create a fresher, younger and future-proof image in order to create a positive assessment of its own innovative ability and local proximity. With the concept car presented, Audi is already demonstrating that it is about far more than just a realignment of the brand. Jaguar has also announced a completely new all-electric product orientation and market positioning, while at the same time halting current production.
Despite all the criticism, Jaguar’s chosen path may well lead to success. It has the potential to tap into new target groups with its radical approach, especially in China. Jaguar may be able to reach customers who have not yet experienced the brand and its history. The provocative design of the first study gives a glimpse of how Jaguar will position itself as an expressive, modern status symbol. However, in a market dominated by domestic BEV manufacturers, entering the market will by no means be easy. At the same time, Jaguar must reinvent itself as a global brand and identify and largely recapture its target group in all regions. This is because traditional Jaguar customers have so far been rather negative about the brand shift. Jaguar is willing to accept losing them with the realignment of the brand.
Other car manufacturers show in a variety of ways how they link their history with the future and incorporate it into important touchpoints with the customer.
Mercedes-Benz has been incorporating its history into its communication for years: This includes regularly referring to itself as the inventor of the automobile or remaking iconic models such as the Vision One-Eleven. This trend is finding its way into the product lines for the first time: The G-Class is being extended by the all-electric EQG and Mini-G to form an entire product family. The iconic vehicle design is thus being further cannibalized, although the characteristics of these new models are far removed from the competencies of the original G-Class (which are irrevocably linked to the “G” product brand). This is not a harmless balancing act between preserving the heritage and expressing the future.
At Porsche, heritage is also heavily reflected in the product portfolio. The iconic design of the 911 is purposefully cited in every other production model from the manufacturer. Every customer, regardless of which Porsche model they buy, acquires a piece of Zuffenhausen sports car history. In the form of the 911 model series, Porsche often embeds its heritage directly into the current product portfolio via limited special models or homage equipment. Although this approach has been successful for many years, it is not a universal remedy: recent sales challenges – particularly in China – show that vehicle sales are not automatically a guaranteed success. Here, the racing victories of the past play no role at all with the often very young customers.
Heritage can be an opportunity and be woven into the growth and future history of a brand to create value. However, success requires an “organic” connection in the story that is understood by the customer. A strong awareness of one’s own origins, positive experiences in dealing with them and a clear strategic direction are therefore indispensable.
Particularly beyond the automotive industry, this combination of tradition and innovation in product and communication is a tried and tested recipe. Louis Vuitton pushes its heritage as a suitcase manufacturer on the one hand – in product lines, in the names of the products or with the iconic LV pattern. At the same time, they engage trend-setting designers such as Virgil Abloh and Pharell Williams to constantly reinvent the brand. Chanel recently ventured into the design of tech wearables – yet hardly a collection goes by without a reference to the world-famous Chanel tweed costume.
However, we are not talking about fashion brands here, but about tech companies – they must stand for innovation per se. So repositioning the brand and placing a clearer focus on innovation is not necessarily wrong. However, it is advisable not to completely throw away heritage as a trump card up the sleeve of a long-standing brand, but to weave it in in a meaningful and reinterpreted way. After all, it is the long-standing history of a brand that really sets it apart from younger players in terms of credibility. To completely turn away from this would be like throwing away potential for a unique selling point in a highly competitive market.
The examples above show different areas of action in which heritage can be further incorporated:
A radical change can help a brand on the brink of collapse to regain its economic momentum. Audi’s Chinese partner SAIC has already made a name for itself as the savior of a brand that was thought to have gone down – with its subsidiary MG, SAIC has breathed new life into a former British icon and achieved mid-single-digit market shares in the growing electric vehicle segment in core markets such as Germany in just a few years. Apart from the familiar octagonal logo, the MG brand has been left with little from the past.
The final verdict on the approach to heritage will be made by the end customers. They either punish the loss of trust and misunderstandings with their purchasing behavior – or they become advocates and (new) fans of the brand.
Copyright Berylls by AlixPartners
