Branding is a living process. Just like your website and content, it needs optimizations over time — a rebranding. The reason behind a rebrand can be different for each brand. But it’s part of the natural progression of a brand. A personal growth spur in which they work on themselves before re-entering the luxury industry.
There are luxury brands that never had any rebrands or a refresh. However, over the years there have been a couple notable rebrands. From consumer generational habits changing to the world as a whole shifting to moving forward with the times — it isn’t unusual that luxury brands chose to rebrand.
From consumer generational habits changing to the world as a whole shifting to moving forward with the times — it isn’t unusual that luxury brands chose to rebrand.
There is a fine line between a rebranding and disaster. You have to balance keeping up with the times and not losing the core identity of your brand. Below we dive into three luxury rebranding examples of the last years that made an impact for the brand and their audience. Both successful and unsuccessful but all great examples to learn from if you are thinking of rebranding.
Key points:
• Three notable luxury rebranding examples that all have a different GAP they filled with their rebranding.
• Staying true to the core identity of a luxury brand is what separates the successful from the less successful rebrands.
• A brand starts to become a brand when you apply your (new) branding to communicate and build relationships. A logo suite and color palette are just elements of a brand; applying them consistently builds the brand.
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Reposition luxury brands
The three notable luxury rebranding examples
01 | Burberry 2023 luxury rebranding
This is one of the most recent talked about luxury rebrands. We’ve dedicated a whole article on it right here. But to recap: in 2018 Burberry decided to rebrand. They ended up dropping the famous Equestrian Knight logo mark and opted for a sleek sans serif font type. In addition they added the “TB” monogram that was based on an archived design and turned it into a brand pattern resembling their famous Nova check. Instead of starting a new era for the brand the rebrand caused a commotion for its removal of its heritage aesthetic.
Fast forwarding to the beginning of 2023, Burberry launched their latest rebrand. The luxury rebranding is led by the new chief creative officer Daniel Lee, who previously rebranded and rebuild Bottega Veneta, and included the return of the Equestrian Knight logo mark. They also used a subtle serif font type. To accompany the rebrand they launched a campaign that focused on the core of the brand: British, contemporary heritage. After the soft launch it got a lot of praise for creating something that felt uniquely Burberry. Yet a new interpretation of the brand for the time we live in right now.
If you want a more in-depth analysis of the Burberry rebranding, check out our article here.
02 | Saint Laurent Paris rebrand
Another talked about rebranding is when Yves Saint Laurent became Saint Laurent Paris. The ready-to-wear line name was changed under control of creative director Hedi Slimane. A bold choice but actually one that still touched on its rich history. The name was based on the original name of the ready-to-wear line that was started in 1966: Saint Laurent Rive Gauche. Yves Saint Laurent is still used for the beauty line and so is the original monogram logo. But it still was highly talked about — even criticized.
Again, the blanding of the logo didn’t go over well. People mentioned that it lost its personality. But in the end, I think the new positioning worked out. Yes, people initially fell over the rebranding of the logo but the vision and repositioning helped to put the brand back on the forefront. Focused on a younger demography with looks that are a balance between coastal cool and chic French style. Understated, elegant design with interesting cuts. The rebranded logo design is a great example of that same concept: understated and less logo focused. Even years after Hedi Slimane left the brand, it still follows the same strategy and remains one of the top luxury brands.
03 | Gucci rebranding
A forgotten but successful luxury rebranding example is Gucci. Founded in 1921 as a luxury luggage brand by Guccio Gucci, it grew into one of the most known luxury brands. However, in 2014 the tide seemed to turn and the brand went through a rebrand.
In January 2015 Alessandro Michele became the creative director for Gucci that transformed the Gucci style into what it is known and loved for today. The brand might not have rebranded in the sense that they got a new brand identity — they did refresh the GG logo from the 1930s — but did a strategic rebrand.
This era for Gucci was focused on connecting with a younger audience. On the Kering Group website they describe it as “redefining Luxury for the 21st century” and a “modern approach to fashion”. Focusing on values like “colorful, romantic, poetic and magical” to build new connections with a younger audience. Because of Michele’s bold design style, the brand collaborations and focus on innovative ways to grow the brand, the rebranding became one of the most successful rebranding examples to date.
In 2023 the fashion house is ready for a new repositioning with the exit of Alessandro Michele as creative director. Let’s see what happens next!
The Gucci rebranding was more than just an updated brand identity — it was a full creative rebrand from designs to art direction to core values
Before you rebrand
Learnings from luxury rebranding examples
The luxury rebranding examples mentioned above show the good and the bad that can happen when you rebrand. Here are the biggest learnings to take away from these three notable examples:
Learning #1: find the GAP
When it comes to a rebrand, the focus needs to be on the GAP between where the brand is currently and where it wants to be. Between these two points is a GAP that you’ll focus on — otherwise, you wouldn’t need a rebranding. The GAP is the interpretation of what is needed to build towards the new brand. Usually this involves a repositioning of the brand, a new brand identity or refreshed logo design, new art direction and marketing efforts. In some cases the luxury brand can do a full 180 but usually a part of the strategy — core values, vision, mission and / or essence — stays in tact.
In the case of the Burberry rebranding, they’ve always focused on their British heritage. It’s a big part of the brand. However, the rebranding before 2023 messed with that image. Hence, the rebrand in 2023 where the focus is back on its British heritage but with a contemporary twist on it to fit the culture of now.
Learning #2: find your uniqueness
One of the biggest criticism of all the rebrands that happened around 2018 was that everything blended into each other. Hence the birth of the term ‘blanding’ — branding that doesn’t have a unique look to it. Now, I’ve already mentioned in this article that the use of the font types in most of these rebrands had a purpose. Which was that it’s more legible online. But I think it is safe to say that it lacked personality. We’ve come to see that a serif font can still work for the digital age.
One big learning is to look at the core identity of the brand. For a brand like Saint Laurent the sans serif font actually works — it’s more edgy (for a lack of a better word) and cool. Which fits in with their collections. Whereas for a brand as Burberry, it erases its heritage. Which is still a big part of their collections and clientele. However, the Gucci rebranding did a complete overhaul from a jetset cool brand to the dreamy, magical brand that it is today.
It’s mostly important to identify what makes your luxury brand unique. This your starting point for to reposition your brand.
Learning #3: build your brand
A large part for a rebranding is the way the new branding is being used across platforms, channels, materials and marketing efforts. It’s the finer details in the art direction that breathes new life into the repositioning of the luxury brand.
A big learning — wether its a rebrand or you are just starting — is that a brand becomes its vision and essence by building it through communication and relationships with the clientele. A color palette and logo suite are just elements. It’s how you use them that creates the brand.
It’s the feeling you give a client through the customer experience — the whole buying process from pre-purchase to after sales. It’s the brand experience — packaging, advertisement, content, products and more. All these touch points need to come together cohesively.
Gucci wouldn’t be seen as a magical, bold brand if it wasn’t for the art and creative direction in its designs and campaigns. See the campaign ad for their Bloom perfume. Burberry wouldn’t be praised if it wasn’t for their rebranding campaign that puts a contemporary spin on the British heritage. And Saint Laurent’s image would not have come together if it wasn’t for the consistent campaign images and creative choices.
It is when all the branding elements come together — visual and non-visuals — with the products and are presented in a way creatively that sets the tone for the brand. It is the thing that clients connect with. And how you start building your brand — even after a rebranding.
Strategic branding expert
Ciao, I’m Fiona Gobbo
I’m the brand strategist & designer behind the luxury branding agency Fiona Gobbo Creative (the name might have tipped you off). I love helping brands with shaping their unique identities through strategy and design. When I’m not working I’m spending time with my cat Vinny, drinking flat whites with friends (or on my own — introvert ~*~vibes~*~) or working on other creative projects like my style blog.
With the blog I will inspire you with my next level branding tips to help you (re)build your high-end or luxury brand.
Strategic branding expert
Ciao, I’m Fiona Gobbo
I’m the brand strategist & designer behind the luxury branding agency Fiona Gobbo Creative (the name might have tipped you off). I love helping brands with shaping their unique identities through strategy and design. When I’m not working I’m spending time with my cat Vinny, drinking flat whites with friends (or on my own — introvert ~*~vibes~*~) or working on other creative projects like my style blog.
With the blog I will inspire you with my next level branding tips to help you (re)build your high-end or luxury brand.
