So, imagine there’s a baby and some bathwater. It appears that Jaguar is intent on throwing both of them out—along with the bath itself, the soft and fluffy towels, and the Sudocrem. It’s all gone.

That’s of course entirely up to them, but wow, they’ve really gone for it. 

Before I get too far into this, there is a suspicion in some quarters that perhaps Jaguar have done this new rebrand and campaign with a view to get people talking about Jaguar again, as let’s face it their sales numbers were plummeting, and they were seemingly less relevant than ever.

So, like the “we’re not making Salad Cream anymore, honestly, yep, we’re done with that stuff, on no, wait, here it is it’s still there but hey you’re all talking about it again” trick, this could be the same. But I get a feeling it’s not. This feels real, whilst also feeling surreal though. So maybe, and I really hope so, this is simply all about attention.

When we look at what Jaguar have done here, they’re effectively thrown away over 100 years of motor sport success, heritage, amazing designs (SS100, XK120/140/150, e-Type, d-type, XJ coupe etc) and more, for something that feels, yes very different, but looking like nothing in the luxury car space, ever.

Does It Fit?
When we look at the rebrand, with its new logo, badge, and the bright punchy advert, it feels more like a perfume or fashion brand, perhaps a make-up brand. And I’m all for being brave and disrupting the status quo, but again, wow, what a shift.

The mixing of the upper- and lower-case letters in the new brand, with its somewhat cyberpunk-y look, just feels way off the mark. And I’m not saying it should have lent heavily into its heritage—Jaguar did need to change, that much is abundantly clear—but why lead with a rebrand, why not let the new product they’re cooking up speak for themselves first. 

The ditching of the Jaguar’s head with teeth bared, is a shame, but there’s some small hope left in the pouncing variant which has had a new look applied. This is the one bit that gives me some hope, this part still feels connected to the original brand and it’s heritage, so maybe I’m clutching at straws, but this bit could be a clue to the real intent. 

But, it’s like they’re trying just too hard to pivot. In fact, Jaguar have flippantly stated they don’t care if they lose 85–90% of their existing buyers. Why be so belligerent towards their loyal brand buyers? Why not get them on board also?

For an admittedly firm old school petrol-head, but one not averse to electric drive chains at times, this whole saga feels forced and way too fashionable for its own good. The creativity, from an atheistic point of view, is executed well if you like the vibe, but from a market placement point of view, seems too far off the mark. 

I do wonder whether the whole brand is shifting from powerful tourers and SUVs (which their Land Rover arm takes care of and outsells Jaguar (sorry jaGuar) 6 to 1 I understand), to a more urban, smaller but high-end style of product. That would fit with this new brand more, but that really would be a huge change for them. But that’s feels more like the original idea for the Smart brand. And that didn’t end to well, so that can’t be their thinking, can it?

What’s Coming?
It’s easy to criticise, and we don’t know what’s up their sleeve right now, but this really hasn’t gone down well. If the launch follows through in the same vein, Jaguar may really have shot themselves in the foot/tyre. I really hope not, we’ve not enough British marques left to lose such an icon. We’ll find out when they get around to launching their new range, let’s see what happens at that point. It’s all very brave of them, but bravery is so easily confused with foolishness at times.

At the end of the advert, all the brightly colour characters that have come straight from a very out-there catwalk (very Zoolander), get up and leave what looks like a rock, some rubble, behind. Let’s hope that’s not a vision of a jaguar will become.

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