Logo design is not easy. At all. You have to distill the entire essence of an organization down into something instantly identifiable, easily reproducible, appealing, eye-catching, everything. It’s far more challenging than I think most people realize. And when it’s not right, everyone can tell, immediately, almost innately. If you don’t believe me, just look at Jaguar’s new logo – and the associated new brand-image campaign – and look at the reactions it’s inspiring, almost none of which are positive. This is feeling like a logo disaster.
Jaguar making a radical and bold change is absolutely a good thing, don’t get me wrong. The brand has been stagnant for some time now, and in desperate need of some sort of reboot. Sure, they have a fantastic history and a legacy of truly iconic cars, but that doesn’t help them sell new cars, which I’m told carmakers enjoy doing. So the idea that Jaguar needs to make a dramatic change is something I absolutely agree with.
I’m just not sure the change should be whatever this is:
Oh boy. There’s a lot there, isn’t there? Let’s just start with the logo:
Now, on some basic design level, I don’t hate this at all; I think the rounded forms are friendly and clean, and the mixing of upper and lower case is playful. It’s approachable and clean, slightly 70s-retro as well. It would be a fantastic logo for, say, a maker of fun budget consumer electronics or perhaps a frozen yogurt brand.
But for a car? For a Jaguar? No.
I mean, I think the old logo was definitely in need of an update; the typography felt stale and dated, and the jaguar itself – the “leaper,” was a bit too complex for an effective logo. It was fine for what it was, but I do agree that an update was in order.
That said, it’s hard to imagine something that feels more wrong than what Jag decided on. As I said, it’s not terrible graphically, but we have to consider what this “device mark” (that’s what Jaguar calls the wordmark logo) feels like and reminds us of, visually, because I hardly think it works as a car brand attempting to compete with Rolls-Royce, Mercedes-Benz, and Bentley.
Here are some other logos that feel very visually similar to the new Jag logo:
So, we have Nintendo’s line of little toys that interact with video games, the stylized typography used for a sci-fi movie about gigantic worms and desert-dwelling drug addicts, and the design of the typography on those Bloomingdale’s bags my Aunt Margie used to always have.
None of these feel like “premium vehicle” to me, electric or otherwise.
Plus, where’s the cat? Why would you get rid of the leaping feline from the logo? That’s the best part! To be fair, the new brand identity does have a place for the leaping jag, shown as a “makers mark” on a striped background that they call “strikethrough” and seems to refer to horizontal line design motifs.
That’s a bit better, and could certainly work well on some sort of rectangular grille. Jaguar also is showing a sort of monogram-like makers mark, too:
Again, not a bad design (if you can get past a sort of monogram that’s JaguaR) but it still doesn’t feel very Jaguar, even if Jaguar wants to make a new idea of Jaguar. I know it’s easy to criticize, because I’m doing that right now so I know, but I still think this logo could have been much, much better.
Here, I’m going to take five minutes to just show you roughly what I mean:
That’s a literal five-minute effort, and I’m not saying this is perfect or even good by any means, but I feel like it captures modernity and Jaguar-ness better than the “device mark” Jaguar put out. Using that new more angular leaper would make it better, but I don’t feel like spending another five minutes doing that. You can imagine it, right?
Okay, that’s just the logo. Let’s get into the brand identity stuff shown in that video I embedded up there. You know, the one with this wacky crew:
Okay, so here’s my big problem with all of this: for something that says “copy nothing,” this is some incredibly derivative stuff. This kind of bold, colorful couture, these saturated-color-monochromatic backgrounds, it’s not new or bold, it’s almost the default go-to when some organization wants to prove how bold and edgy and daring they are.
Don’t believe me? Here’s a little experiment to try. Grab a sample image of one of these Gautier-ish-looking models and do a reverse image search. Let’s try one with this vivid friend here:
…and the results:
There are many, many similar earlier examples of this aesthetic, going back about 20 years or so. There have been plenty of looks like this, the ruffles, the color, the fit, the expression, the overall look. This is not new ground that’s being tread, this is the easiest, most worn path to making people think new ground is being tread.
Some of these references go back even further. Take Temu Tilda Swinton here with her sledgehammer:
She’s not breaking any moulds there; she’s snuggling into a mould that was first used to cast a brand identity back in 1984.
And I think that may be the real problem here: this whole identity and campaign wants so desperately to be seen as shocking or new or novel but it just isn’t. It’s pandering and lazy and while I respect that Jaguar wants to shoot for something artier and unexpected, this just isn’t it.
This kind of artful shocking, using striking, unusual-looking models and visuals that arrest and surprise certainly can be done to sell cars. Citroën figured it out decades ago, for example:
Seriously, can you imagine going on a road trip with this guy?:
After about an hour of listening to his atonal music and listening to him complain about every fucking billboard you pass and refusing to play word games with you and eating his smelly mung beans, noisily, you’d want to ditch this scarlet bore at the first Sheetz you stopped at.
The tone isn’t innovative, it’s smug and elitist and while, sure, that’s part of the Jaguar identity, this is stupidly and derivatively smug and elitist. I suppose there will be people who will say that at least we’re talking about Jaguar now, but I’m not sure that’s so great. Because everyone seems to be talking about how they don’t want whatever Jaguars come out of this.
There needs to be a new idea of Jaguar, no question. Whatever this mess is, though, is not it.
Jaguar, if you want a do-over, I think everyone is okay with that.
It’s almost as if someone at the ad agency watched a commercial for a fashion or perfume brand and had their minds blown. Seriously, I cannot remember when was the last time I saw a perfume commercial that made any sense or gave me an idea of what I would be buying.
Exhibit A: What is even going on here? Why is the lady crying gold?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDrCCj2UCaw
Exhibit B: You know what, screw it, let’s do a supercut:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpIOeQ86Lls
Jaguar, buddy, don’t do this!
God I hate perfum ads.
Over here they are on constantly during the run up to Christmas. That one with Jonny Depp makes me assume it smells of drunk pirates and shame.
All of them just make me add that company to the list of wankers who will never get my money.
On entirely the other side of the marketing coin is Alpinestars. I own a set of Alpinestars bike leathers, bike boots, FIA race boots, and FIA race suit, two MTB tops and five pairs of Alpinestars gloves, and I have no idea why I chose them.
This. They made a brand for luxury eyewear. Not cars.
Hey… “Down” is also a direction!
These people don’t look ‘exuberant’ – they look like the before photo in an ad for antidepressants.
My thought exactly, they sure aren’t having fun so why would I want to associate myself with this brand?
Granted, Jaguar was always a more serious brand than a fun brand, but they weren’t anti-fun (Project 8, anyone?). These people look like they’re anti-fun.
Or the “after” photo for Bennetton’s upcoming spring line of frontal lobotomies.
They were made to live in your head rent-free forever…
“Temu Tilda Swinton” this is why I love this site!
Yeah, I still can’t believe Calvin Klein stole Kramer’s perfume idea!
“The Beach”
My parents have owned numerous generations of Jags over the decades, they were all trash, never made it close to 200,00klms. They all looked great broken down in the driveway, but as a vehicle they were useless and poorly build (especially the Ford ones). Jag is like Mike Tyson: everyone remembers them for their glory days, but those days are far behind them and they can just retire now.
Tyson? More like Joe Louis.
I bet all my savings that there was a meeting about the logo change and they used phrases “toxic masculinity” and “inclusive” during this meeting.
This whole [insert verb] [insert adjective] and try and make a point or three HAS TO STOP! Jag, buddy, we need to talk.
That’s bad. And you know that it’s taken many months and hundreds of thousands of pounds to get here.
You’re off by a few zeros, I duspect
I duspect you’re correct, I just didn’t want to sound too hyperbolic.
Having thought about it, I suspect this means Jaguar thinks they’re seen as a brand for white guys like Nigel Farage or Prince Andrew, and they want to change that because people who aren’t like that have money now too.
Oh, um – the guy in yellow; did ya ever see that movie Alien: Prometheus?
Or as I think of it, ‘Space Exploring Morons : Extra Stupid Edition’.
Wow, this sucks.
Also why are they doing all this now when there’s no product to actually sell? What’s anyone who gets excitied by this to do?
Well, clearly, just don’t get excited. They have eight people there to demonstrate exactly how to be not excited while waiting for the new Jaguar.
Sarcasm aside, I think the idea is that they don’t want people to forget that Jaguar exists while they have their lull, but at the same time they don’t want people to remember what it was. They certainly succeeded at the latter, but I don’t know about the former. It’s a bit “all hat, no trousers”.
Writing your name in a font found on MS Word is not a logo. This looks like some MLM cosmetic company’s ad for a new perfume.
Brilliant analysis. Rarely felt an article being so accurate
The monogram is very 60s, but reminiscent of inexpensive economy cars (Mazda, Isuzu, etc.).
And I can see that they’re trying to look futuristic with the imagery, but the models look like the immortals from Zardoz. It’s a bad vibe. “Buy a Jaguar and be consumed by ennui.”
Yikes. This is worse than the Opel “rebrand”.
Come on, we all know Paintbrush Guy drives a 2010 Prius.
Sledgehammer Woman drives a Chevy Equinox. You’d think it’d be a Subaru by the stereotype but her day job’s at the Avis counter and she gets a steep employee discount on ex-rentals.
The video…yeah, that’s pretty bad. The logo…not bad. I think the video takes down the logo BIG TIME. I think it works. But it across the tail of a modern Jag and I think it would work. The people here mentioning using a paw? Ugh. Talk about dated.
I do think this will work well. The current logo is the one that looks like a men’s cologne brand from the early nineties.
https://www.jaguarhinsdale.com/evolution-of-the-jaguar-logo/
If I was pitching this I might do a rework of the logo type from the 1945-51 as that is really interesting, modern and could reflect their heritage. But they’ve done worse…check out the chromed out version of their current logo (2012-2021)
It’s a tough job to rethink a brand.
Using the paw would be the Penn State of vehicles. Would it make insufferable people start bragging about their Jags like people brag about going to Penn State?
IMHO – This is the last great Jaguar commercial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoSt1egsknk
Ever notice how Rolls Royce, Mercedes-Benz, Bentley, Apple, IBM, Princess Cruises, British Airways, Kleenex, Rolex, Omega, Cartier, Tiffany, Chanel, Godiva, Tumi, Riva (Yachts), Neiman Marcus, Brooks Brothers, Nike, etc have updated their logos minimally over the past several decades – if at all?
Here’s a lesson for the C-Suite: If you think you need to update your logo to get more business – It’s not the logo that’s the problem.
Years from now this will be studied as an example of a brand saying “fuck you” to it’s entire clientele in one hit.
JaGuar’s Consignia moment?
Should’ve gone with a Bollywood theme.
If Citroen made something Cybertruck-y those models would be in the advertising for it.
https://youtu.be/qYgpnWoRbXg?si=-_IYgVDvSNjsYFT3
What I’m imagining the Jaguar pitch was like.
That font says “Jaguar” about as well as Comic Sans says “currency.”
Thank god it wasn’t Lotus that came up with this.
Will the new Jags come with trendy Stanley Mugs too as standard equipment?
NOW IS TIME ON SPROCKETS WHERE WE DANCE!
https://youtu.be/rZMoGyr1BFU?si=t5CgetLIjlt8QwZ5
Just a few thoughts:
1. I love that back slash as a grille. Maybe even light it up.
2. A hundred year old company may think a new design that looks 20 years old modernized it and kept some host to it.
3. Advertising to sell you use the guy owners want to be or the woman they want to be with. This clown car circus might work for a quirky car say a smart or a Fiat 500 or a soul great for the new drivers but not an expensive brand.
4. Anyone thinking a Jaguar paw by itself, or with Jaguar written across the paw, or Jaguar with the two A’s being Jaguar paws is a good idea?
Little toe beans from a Jaguar’s paw would be an adorable logo for a Fiat500-sized Jag
Little toe beans would be a great band name for a folk art band.
Happens when u hand over your advertising portfolio to an AI. Half assed and phoned in.
I’m thinking GenZ can’t drive a car or the CEOs daughter?
The caption for the photo should be:
Be excellent to each other, and… Party On Dude!