Jaguar boss defends ‘bold’ rebranding after backlash over video

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The boss of Jaguar has defended its “bold” rebranding after a backlash over a new company logo and a promotional video that did not feature cars, saying its message had been lost in a “flare of intolerance” online.

Jaguar Land Rover, the British luxury carmaker owned by India’s Tata Motors, this week issued a 30 seconds clip on X and Instagram that featured models dressed in brightly colored outfits to reveal a new company logo that didn’t feature the iconic “jumping” big cat.

The Jaguar campaign attracted more than 160 million views on social media, but also the ire of some car enthusiasts, activists and influencers who were angry that the 90-year-old brand was “waking up” and “throwing away heritage”.

Jaguar chief executive Rawdon Glover said in an interview with the Financial Times that the intended message had been lost in “a flurry of intolerance” on social media and denied that the promotional video was intended as a “woke” statement.

“If we play the same way everyone else does, we’ll just drown. So we shouldn’t emerge as a car brand,” Glover said.

“We have to re-establish our brand and at a completely different price point, so we have to act differently. We wanted to move away from traditional car stereotypes.”

Glover said that while the overall buzz of the new campaign had been “very positive”, he was disappointed by the “level of vile hate and intolerance” in the comments towards the people featured in the video.

The teaser was supposed to be the start of a crucial campaign to revive the ailing Jaguar brand, which plans to go all-electric by next year. But the campaign unexpectedly stumbled ahead of the unveiling of its new electric GT model at Miami Art Week next month.

It’s part of a wider rebranding that also involved replacing the leaper from the front of its car with a double J logo, although the big cat still appears with a new “penetrating” look on another part of the vehicle.

Some advertising executives expressed shock that a heritage company had embraced such a radical makeover. “You can destroy a brand in 30 seconds that took a lifetime to build,” said a senior advertising executive who has worked with the Jaguar brand.

“Strong brands reinvent themselves but always stay true to the core of their DNA. Especially for luxury brands, authenticity is key and this fails the test.”

James Ramsden, executive creative director of Coley Porter Bell, the branding and design agency, said: “This new work is striking, colourful, inclusive and dramatic, although it’s a shame they’ve walked away from some of the iconic, much-loved and beautiful icons that have been in the brand’s DNA for generations.”

Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of X who often uses his prominent profile to wade into culture war issues, shared the ad with his 205 million followers and asked: “Do you sell cars?”

Jaguar is the latest company to face a consumer backlash over its decision to move away from its established brand heritage in a bid to find a new, younger audience.

Bud Light sales plummeted last year after a transgender influencer, Dylan Mulvaney, was used in a social media promotion. Owner Anheuser-Busch, whose beer is seen as a stalwart of working-class American drinkers, was later forced to change its marketing strategy due to calls for a boycott of the beer.

An Apple iPad ad showing musical instruments, cameras and artwork being crushed by a giant hydraulic press also sparked outrage among consumers at the level of destruction. Apple issued a rare apology and pulled the ad’s TV airtime.

Advertising executives said Jaguar’s new branding already felt dated, noting recent efforts in the industry to focus more on driving sales using established brand principles and a move away from campaigns deemed awake or dignified.

Auto industry executives also said the rebranding was a significant effort. JLR’s new electric luxury models due out next year will be priced above £100,000, more than double the existing range.

As it completes its shift to electric vehicles, the company has stopped selling new cars in the UK and has mostly ended production of its iconic petrol models.

JLR bosses say the company wants to target younger and wealthier customers and rebuild its image as a pure luxury brand rather than an old car marque.

“This is not a depiction of what we think our future customers are like,” Glover said. “We don’t necessarily want to leave all our customers behind. But we need to attract a new customer base.”