A Change of Brand

Eric Ng, Executive Creative Director, and Andie Wexler, Senior Brand Strategist and Writer, discuss the challenges and implications of a name change for the successful travel company Scott's Cheap Flights. They explore the process of creating a new brand identity, including the involvement in research, naming, and verbal identity. The podcast also delves into trademark challenges, surprising name choices, and the influence of clients and teammates on the branding process.

(Not so) lovingly referred to as the Florence Fiasco, the city of Florence, Alabama’s 2022 rebrand often tops the list for the worst logo launch in recent history. But it’s not just the logo that caused an uproar - the entire rebrand process became a local scandal full of lies, cover-ups and finger-pointing from city officials. Florence-native B.T. Harman, content strategist and creative guru, provides insight into the rebrand disaster and why it went so far south.To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand.Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited and scored by Landon Oseitutu, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, written in part and produced by Brianna Belcher, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.

Around 2020, Visa wanted to reposition their brand for the digital economy and become more purpose driven. However, this story is more about honesty and how direct an agency can be with a client. Rob Duncan, Partner and Creative Director at Mucho, shares that there is a right balance between being a straight shooter and choosing your battles for the sake of creating the best work possible.To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand.Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited and scored by Landon Oseitutu, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, written in part and produced by Brianna Belcher, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.

Despite the success of selling over one million boxes of macaroni and cheese, Kraft wanted to position their signature pasta dish as a timeless comfort food for all people while creating a more contemporary look. In this episode, we catch up with Terry Sieting, Senior Designer at JKR to get the inside scoop on the Kraft Mac and Cheese 2022 packaging and brand identity refresh. To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand.Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited and scored by Landon Oseitutu, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, written in part and produced by Brianna Belcher, and artwork by Rachel Jackson. 

Brands don’t exist in a vacuum. Sometimes world events change the way the world will look at your brand. And a change is needed. As bay-area tech startup Zapier prepared to launch its brand refresh, a new symbol making headlines would create a moral dilemma. Michael Jeter, former Creative Director at Zapier, shares with us how they navigated the decision to scrap months of work and move forward with a new vision.To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand.Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited and scored by Landon Oseitutu, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, written in part and produced by Brianna Belcher, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.

We’re kicking off Season 4 with a closer look at Instacart, which has been the leader in grocery delivery services since its early start-up days. But after about 10 years in the market, their brand was feeling a bit stale. Or wilted. In 2022, they started to dangle a new logo and look and feel for customers to get excited about. But the path to get there wasn’t easy. In this episode, we go behind the scenes with Kevin Byrd, Executive Creative Director for Instacart and Daniel Renda, Senior Creative Director at Wolff Olins to find out whether they bit off more than they could chew. To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand. Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited and scored by Landon Oseitutu, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, written in part and produced by Brianna Belcher, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.

Name changes are possibly one of the hardest things a brand can endure. With over a million trademarks filed annually with the United States Patent and Trademark office, but only 170,000 English words in common use today, names are only going to get more creative - for better or worse. In this bonus episode, host Blake Howard and naming guru Rob Meyerson discuss some of the biggest brand naming wins and fails, as well as provide insight into the nebulous process of naming a brand.For more on Rob Meyerson and his book Brand Naming, visit: https://robmeyerson.com/ and https://robmeyerson.com/book To learn more about the brands discussed today, visit: achangeofbrand.comProduced by Matchstic (matchstic.com/@matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard, edited by Gabe Kitzman, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.

There aren’t many automotive brands mightier than Bugatti. So when the manufacturer of multi-million dollar supercars handed the keys to the brand over to Head of Strategy Linda Marquardt, Associate Creative Director Juan Barrios, and their team at Interbrand, it was a big moment. In this episode, A Change of Brand uncovers what it’s like to rebrand the incomparable and pitch a product most people don’t expect they’ll ever be able to afford.To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand.Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard, (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited by Gabe Kitzman, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, co-written by Cam Leberecht, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.

Sprite is one of the world’s most popular soft drinks, with a style you can spot a mile away. But despite its signature look, the refreshing soda needed to find a way to stay fresh with a young new audience. In this episode, we go behind the scenes with Chris Garvey, Executive Creative Director at Turner Duckworth to see how they did it…and to hear firsthand what it’s like to catch your white whale.To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand.Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard, (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited by Gabe Kitzman, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, co-written by Cam Leberecht, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.

M&Ms has a lot going for it — cute, memorable characters, a wide range of flavors, not to mention a storied brand over 80 years strong. But how could Mars Inc. expand the candy brand’s identity beyond its sweet core elements? Kristie Malivindi, design director at Jones, Knowles, Ritchie, catches up with A Change of Brand to recount how JKR navigated stakeholder apprehension to create a full-fledged, flexible system that’s not short on fun.To see the change of brand for yourself, visit achangeofbrand.com or follow us on Instagram @achangeofbrand.Produced by Matchstic (matchstic.com / @matchstichouse), hosted by Blake Howard, (@blakehoward), co-hosted by Tracy Clark, edited by Gabe Kitzman, fact-checked by Jill Jeffries, co-written by Pamela Henman, and artwork by Rachel Jackson.