Rebranding is hard but there is no excuse for disemvowelling
When Vladimir Putin decided to invade Ukraine in February, the staff at a smallish travel business more than 1,500 miles away in England were busy with other things.
Their outfit specialises in what it calls unforgettable experiences for young people — teaching in Thailand, South African skydiving, Ibiza partying — and Ukraine had not been high on its radar.
But it soon was because, throughout its 14-year history, the business had only had one name: Invasion.
As of Thursday, Invasion became Intravelr, a cross between its old name and Intrax, an older, larger US travel group that bought Invasion last year.
“It’s a shame,” says Steiert, who named the company after the big city “invasions” or getaways for law students that he used to organise while at university. “But equally this also represents a new opportunity.”
I am sure it does, and not just for Invasion, or Intravelr as we must now call it.
Its story also offers a chance to consider some of the dos and don’ts of rebranding, starting with motivation.
This story originally appeared on: Financial Times - Author:Pilita Clark
