Let’s Talk Jaguar

In 2024 Jaguar rebranded their company, which caused great controversy and was met with vitriol. It was announced with a short video that was very different and unexpected for a sports car brand. It was colorful and heavily influenced by modern art. This video had everyone very confused as to what it was all about, how nonsensical and inappropriate it was for a car brand, especially for Jaguar.

I’m sure I’m in the minority here, but honestly, I really like it, not just for the aesthetic but for the practicality and reasoning behind it. Before we get into that, however, let’s talk about the brand of Jaguar first. The roots of the Jaguar brand were always in “Originality.” Its founder, “Sir William Lyons,” believed that Jaguar should be “A copy of nothing.” These new cars that will be under the new Jaguar lineup are very different from what you would typically see. It is probably one of the most original designs for a car I’ve ever seen, and they are very interesting to look at. The new Jaguar lineup undertakes an artistic endeavor when it comes to their car designs and is reflected in their new brand identity.

New electric vehicles under the Jaguar lineup.

Jaguar’s new cars are also electric, and if we look at what many other car manufacturers are doing, it makes sense in keeping the Jaguar brand modern and relevant. An understandable critique of the Jaguar rebrand was that it “alienates its core customers,” and it does, but…that’s good. Jaguar in the last few years has actually been underperforming in terms of sales. Jaguar was selling way fewer cars than they were manufacturing, therefore they were at a financial loss when it came to the Jaguar lineup. Therefore, their usual target audience wasn’t profitable at the time, so they changed the audience. Why would you keep selling to people who aren’t buying? Their audience is now younger, richer, and more “design-minded” consumers. The company expects to lose 85% of its current customers. Apparently, the new cars will sell for roughly double the price of their older models.

Jaguar’s new logo.

Jaguar’s new logo seamlessly blends uppercase and lowercase typography. The letterforms use Geometric Sans Serif typography and are very minimalistic in its approach.

Jaguar’s new monogram derived from their new logo.

Jaguar’s new “Strikethrough” logo.

Jaguar also employs a new monogram logo derived from their new wordmark logo, as well as a new “Strikethrough” logo that uses the iconic “Leaping Jaguar.” Their new visual aesthetic was heavily criticized for being tone-deaf; however, I think it works very well in the context of what they are trying to achieve and the overall new aesthetic of their car lineup. Their new brand colors are very vibrant and colorful, straight off the painter’s palette. These colors may not typically be seen as luxury colors, but they sure are artistic.

We must remember the term “Re-Brand” doesn’t mean just changing the logo and the overall appearance of the visual identity of the brand; it is a repositioning and redirecting of the brand in the market, and the visual identity aspect of it is simply a reflection of that change.