Jaguar Rebrand Sparks Confusion, Angers Anti-'Woke' Critics ...

10 hours ago

Forbes

Topline

British luxury vehicle company Jaguar has defended itself against backlash from internet users over its rebranding—including a new logo in a colorful new advertisement—with both fans and anti-“woke” critics ripping the ad’s diversity.

The new Jaguar logo conspicuously lacks cars, which sparked confusion. (Photo by Jeremy ... [+] Moeller/Getty Images)

Getty Images Key Facts

Jaguar posted the new advertisement to its social media accounts Tuesday, featuring a diverse group of models in brightly colored outfits as messages like “live vivid” and “delete ordinary” appear onscreen, accompanied with the caption: “Copy nothing.”

The advertisement, and new profile pictures across Jaguar’s social media accounts, unveil a new logo with a different, more simplistic font that contains both capital and lowercase letters and a revamped Jaguar “leaper” image.

The ad sparked immediate blowback online: nearly all the top-liked Instagram comments on Jaguar’s post are critical, with the top comment, liked more than 13,000 times, claiming the company “killed a British icon.”

In a press release, Jaguar said the advertisement marks the “reveal of a completely reimagined brand” focused on artistic expression, stating the “next stage in the transformation of Jaguar” will be revealed Dec. 2 at Miami Art Week.

Forbes has reached out to Jaguar for comment.

Chief Critics

Tesla and X CEO Elon Musk pointed out the lack of vehicles in Jaguar’s ad in a post on X, asking: “Do you sell cars?” Musk’s post was liked more than 164,000 times—much more than the 9,000 likes the Jaguar ad garnered—and was viewed nearly 3 million times. Andrew Tate, a divisive online influencer who has described himself as a misogynist, called the ad “gay bullsh*t” and said he would refuse to purchase Jaguars. Jaguar’s advertisement garnered 62,000 replies on X, many critical, with one of the top replies stating the ad must be “surely a joke” and another urging consumers to boycott the company. Bev Turner, a British television host on the conservative-leaning GB News channel, said the ad looked like Jaguar asked artificial intelligence to create the “wokest, most pretentious, gender-ambiguous piece of self-satisfied A-level art.” Some anti-“woke” social media users circulated a month-old video of a Jaguar brand director voicing a commitment to “fostering a diverse, inclusive and unifying culture,” slamming the emphasis on diversity as “woke.”

Contra

Jaguar has repeatedly defended the ad on its X account, replying directly to critical comments with messages clarifying the company’s intentions and urging people to wait for further updates. Jaguar responded to Musk’s post questioning whether the company still sells cars: “Yes. We'd love to show you. Join us for a cuppa in Miami on 2nd December?” In response to another user who said, “Go woke, go broke,” a common phrase used by anti-“woke” critics who boycott companies that unveil diversity and inclusion-focused marketing campaigns, Jaguar responded: “Go hard.” One user asked Jaguar where the cars are in the ad, and the company replied: “Pulling up. The story’s still unfolding – stay tuned.” Despite the critical comments, the company appears to stand by its new direction, replying one user who felt the rebrand would “tarnish” the company: “Quite the opposite. This is a renaissance.”

Key Background

Jaguar’s rebrand comes ahead of its planned move to only sell electric vehicles. Earlier this year, Adrian Mardell, CEO of JLR, the holding company that owns Jaguar, would halt production of all vehicles in its current lineup aside from the F-Pace, with an aim to become an electric-only company by 2025. Mardell reportedly said the models that were cut had generated “close to zero profitability.”

Tangent

Last year, many brands faced similar bouts of anti-“woke” online criticism and boycotts in response to companies adopting inclusive marketing campaigns. Chief among these was Bud Light, the beer brand that sent transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney a customized can with her face on it to celebrate the anniversary of her coming out as transgender and to promote March Madness. Angered critics led a boycott of the brand, which slumped in sales and lost its title as the United States’ top-selling beer.