Glenfiddich overhauls brand
Glenfiddich has overhauled its branding to provide a global platform to express its premium credentials, a move it hopes will breed the “confidence” needed to drop the name from its logo in the next ten years.
The Scotch whisky has created a new identity, colour system and set of brand expressions it feels are capable of creating a “consistent premium brand” with desires on the luxury segment.
The transition starts with the Glenfiddich stag logo, which has been redrawn so that it is more anatomically correct to play up the brand’s masculinity, power, confidence and maturity. The changes to logo take inspiration from the likes of Nike and Starbucks in a bid to give it the flexibility moving forward to axe the brand name from the logo and still affect consumers.
The logo is the first on a marketing checklist the scotch whisky has developed to ensure consistency in every market. The sleeker stag image is backed by three other priority points on the list, Glenfiddich’s family run strapline, the new “master brand colour” and typography styled on founder’s William Grant handwriting.
The rationale stems from the scotch whisky’s need to capture more brand equity after admitting previous branding had become “fragmented” as various markets puled it in different directions.
Sarah Macaulay, global marketing manager for Glenfiddich, says the branding gives the stag icon “room to breathe” and has built-in rules that will allow it to be used in isolation in various marketing initiatives.
“Glenfiddich is family run so there are elements of the company that are quite traditional. We didn’t want to get rid of what was authentic about the brand but if you keep it too traditional than it becomes less relevant to the consumer”, adds Macaulay.
Four additional elements can be integrated into future communications as and when local marketers see fit. The elements cover a “warmer” tone of voice, more evocative imagery, graphical embellishments on packaging and greater consideration of how the brand will come alive in physical spaces.
The positioning, created by Purple Creative, will appear across the upcoming revamped Glenfiddich site and rolled out globally in every market as new communications are created. A key part of the future marketing will be to try to convince drinkers of the brand’s premium credentials over rivals by pushing its family run heritage, which is unique to the category.
The move comes as Glenfiddich’s owner William Grant & Sons shakes up to expand the reach of its whisky brands. Since its rebrand from First Drinks earlier this year, the company has reshuffled its marketing team to speed up the exchange of ideas across the business.
