After watching the Jaguar rebrand unfold, I have one question: When did depth charging your brand identity become a marketing strategy?
Because what Jaguar unveiled isn’t rebranding at all: it’s ugly brand vandalism disguised as chic innovation. And the worst part? They’re proud of it.
What Jaguar Actually Did (Spoiler: It Wasn’t Rebranding)
Let me be direct about this: the Jaguar rebrand represents everything wrong with modern marketing. They ditched their iconic leaping cat logo, scrapped the classic “growler” badge that’s been on cars for decades, and launched a campaign featuring ridiculously dressed models walking through what looks like a dystopian fashion show. The tagline? “Copy nothing.”
The irony is rich. In their attempt to “copy nothing,” they’ve copied every superficial rebranding mistake in the book.
Their reveal video shows freakish models strutting and posing alongside non-sensical slogans like “break moulds” and “create exuberant.” Notice what’s missing? Cars. Not a single vehicle appears in their automotive rebrand campaign. As one expert quoted in recent coverage noted, “If I didn’t know I was clicking on a Jaguar advert, I would’ve thought it was some fashion brand.”
But here’s what really bothers me: Jaguar’s managing director openly stated he expects only 15 percent of customers he hopes the rebrand will attract to be previous Jaguar owners. They’re not just changing their look: they’re explicitly rejecting their existing customer base. They’re throwing away decades of brand equity because they think it will generate buzz and attract new customers.
That’s not brand strategy. That’s brand suicide.
Why the Jaguar Rebrand Was Doomed to Fail
The Jaguar rebrand catastrophe reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of what authentic branding actually means. Meaningful, strategic rebranding evolves from a deep exploration of the brand’s authentic identity.
In my book “You Are Remarkable,” I addressed this exact situation … when organizations think they need to scrap everything and start over:
“Companies rebrand too often. Way too often. It’s disorienting for everybody… Genuine rebranding, on the other hand, is like changing your skin. It hurts… There are cases, such as when companies merge or divide, when rebranding may be the right choice. There is only one situation in which we believe rebranding is always necessary: When an organization quite literally isn’t the same organization anymore.” (p. 145)
This distinction matters enormously for any rebranding effort. Jaguar changed their brand expression (the visual and verbal elements that represent their brand) but, along the way, they completely abandoned their brand identity and heritage.
Authentic brand strategy examines fundamental questions first: Who are we? Why do we exist? What makes us remarkable? Only after answering these questions should you consider how to express that identity visually and verbally.
The Jaguar rebrand skipped the hard work entirely. Instead of understanding their authentic identity and finding contemporary ways to express it, they chased trendy (now dated) design flourishes in a desperate attempt to appear relevant. What they did was appear delusional and desperate.
Two Instructive EV Rebrands: Cadillac vs. Jaguar
Want to see how electric vehicle transitions should handle brand heritage? Look at Cadillac’s recent rebrand. When Cadillac shifted toward electric vehicles, they didn’t abandon their identity: They refined how they expressed it.
Cadillac’s brand strategy understood that luxury automotive heritage isn’t a liability; it’s an asset when handled thoughtfully. They preserved the essence of what made Cadillac distinctive while updating their expression for contemporary relevance. The result feels both timeless and current, respectful of their past while oriented toward their future.
Their approach demonstrated sophisticated brand strategy thinking: How do we honor our remarkable history while positioning ourselves for tomorrow’s market? How do we attract new customers without alienating the ones who made us successful?
The Jaguar rebrand took the opposite approach. Rather than asking how to honor their brand heritage while evolving, they asked how to generate maximum controversy. Their chief creative officer stated explicitly that he wanted to “shock, surprise and polarise” and make people “feel uncomfortable.”
That’s not brand strategy. That’s attention-seeking behavior.
The Brand Heritage They Abandoned
This missed opportunity becomes even more frustrating when you consider what Jaguar’s brand strategy completely ignored. The classic leaping cat logo wasn’t just distinctive; it was iconic. That bright green Jaguar badge had immediate recognition and nostalgic appeal that younger consumers actually gravitate toward today.
Even more compelling was their “Uncola” equivalent positioning opportunity. Remember when Jaguar meant something specific in automotive culture? When driving a Jaguar communicated sophistication, performance, and British craftsmanship? When Inspector Morse’s iconic Mk2 represented the perfect balance of intellect and elegance?
They had decades of cultural associations with excellence, luxury, and distinctiveness. Instead of exploring how to be the automotive alternative in an electric vehicle world, the Jaguar rebrand chased generic contemporary design trends that could apply to any tech startup.
They traded authentic brand heritage for forgettable modernization.
The High Cost of Reckless Rebranding
What bothers me most about the Jaguar rebrand approach is how it represents a fundamental misunderstanding of what brands actually are. When organizations think branding is just logos and marketing campaigns, they miss opportunities to build genuine connections with customers who share their values and purpose.
Critics have called the Jaguar rebrand “cultural vandalism,” and they’re not wrong. Organizations become remarkable when they understand their authentic purpose and express it consistently through every interaction. They build communities of customers who believe what they believe and want to be part of something meaningful.
The Jaguar rebrand isn’t truthful. It’s not rooted in who they actually are or what they genuinely believe. It’s rooted in what they think will generate attention and attract a demographic they’ve decided they want to serve … a demographic unlikely to afford Jaguar’s inflated sticker prices.
Customers see through this superficiality. They can tell when you’re trying to look different without actually being different. This kind of rebranding approach might generate short-term PR buzz, but it does at the cost of lasting relationships that drive long-term business profitability.
Meanwhile, organizations that understand authentic branding (who know their purpose, live their values, and express their brand identity consistently) build loyal communities of customers who do their marketing for them.
When Rebranding Makes Sense
Let me be clear: There are legitimate reasons to rebrand. Changes in ownership, mergers, or shifts in core purpose can justify examining brand identity. Market evolution and technological disruption can require updating brand expression.
But authentic brand strategy addresses these significant changes through careful analysis, not attention-seeking PR stunts. It asks difficult questions about purpose and values before considering visual updates.
If Jaguar genuinely believed their brand identity no longer served their purpose, their brand strategy should have included the hard work of understanding what identity would serve them better. Instead, they seem to have concluded that any identity is better than their existing one, as long as it generates controversy.
That’s not strategic thinking. That’s desperation disguised as boldness.
The Verdict: Not Remarkable, Just Reckless
So is the Jaguar rebrand remarkable? Not even close. It’s a cautionary tale about what happens when organizations confuse attention with achievement.
Thoughtful brand strategy requires the courage to examine who you are, why you exist, and how you can authentically serve customers in ways others cannot. Authentic rebranding means aligning your brand expression with your brand identity, not abandoning your identity to chase current fads.
The Jaguar rebrand chose the easy path of controversy over the harder work of authentic brand development. They prioritized generating controversy over building relationships.
If you’re considering rebranding your own organization, learn from Jaguar’s mistake. Professional services branding demands even more authenticity than consumer brands: Your clients need to trust not just your capabilities, but your character.
Start with the deeper questions first. Understand your authentic identity, clarify your purpose, and identify what makes you genuinely remarkable. Only then should you think about how to express that identity in ways that resonate with the customers you’re meant to serve.
Remarkable brands aren’t built through logo updates and controversy campaigns. They’re built through authentic stories consistently told and lived every single day.
Your brand isn’t your logo. It’s who you are when nobody’s watching, expressed in ways that make the right people stop and say, “That’s exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Have you been a part of a rebranding effort at some point in your career? Do you think it was more a superficial attention-seeking exercise or was it rooted in something deeper like the brand’s purpose and personality? I’d love to hear your perspective.
