Ireland has many heritage brands. But why do brands change? When does it become meaningful for a brand to change? We find out.
Tayto is more than a crisp; in Ireland, it’s a cultural phenomenon. How many confectionery brands in the world have inspired a book (‘The Man Inside the Jacket’) or their very own theme park? Meanwhile, abroad, many in the Irish diaspora claim to miss Tayto more than their family members. It all started in 1954 when Joe “Spud” Murphy set up the company off Moore St. with a budget of £500. Since then Tayto has gone from selling 347 packs a day to 525 packs a minute. Check out the original branding versus what we have today.
Kerrygold butter was born in 1962 when the Irish Dairy Board chose the name from a list of alternatives which included ‘Leprechaun’ and ‘Tub-o-Gold’. Thank goodness for that. The logo has evolved slowly over the years, with the most recent incarnation appearing in 2010.
HB Ice Cream. Every good brand should mix up its product offering now and then, and this has certainly been the case with Ireland’s most iconic ice cream maker, HB. Taking its name from the initials of its founder William Hughes, the company has offered a wide variety of ice creams since its foundation in 1926. In 1979, you could pick up the now forgotten Butterscotch ice-cream for 15p and in 1983 you could pick up something called a Chilly Willy. Some ice creams like the Solero, introduced in 1997, are still with us while 1988’s pencil shaped pop ‘The Scribbler’ just didn’t catch on.
Why do brands change over time and when does it become meaningful for a company to amend its brand?
“Brands evolve for a number of reasons,” says Gary Joyce, managing partner of Genesis, an agency specialising in brand strategy and development. It’s important to change brands when “the current brand positioning (where the brand sits in the consumer’s mind) no longer works; when the brand innovates and extends to appeal to new customers or new markets; or when a competitor encroaches on a brand’s territory,” says Joyce.
To see how other brands have changed over time see the link below.
(Source: Think Business)
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