Enobytes Wine Blog

Have you noticed how often producers change their wine labels? Case in point; you are in a local wine store in search of your favorite wine, which mysteriously disappears off the shelf. You’ve bought it a million times before and its branding is fairly recognizable; it has a big red and green label with a gold insignia on the top - so where is it? You think to yourself, maybe the store is simply out of stock; maybe they stopped carrying it. Has the thought ever crossed your mind that the label changed?

This happens more often than you think. Sometimes label changes are very subtle minimal alterations whereas some labels go through radical change. Labels might lean towards a simplistic and classic look one year and then shift to a bold and modern appearance the next.

Of course, there are sound reasons for wanting to re-brand a label. The most obvious reason stems from a merger or de-merger activity. Motivation for change may also come from producers adjusting their winemaking style or changing their company strategy.

Parducci is one of those producers that recently changed their label due to a merger acquisition. In 2004, the Mendocino Wine Company acquired Parducci, which in turn, necessitated a label change, which emerged a bold new wine label.

The new harlequin print orange and olive colored recycled label (right image) seems to balance the essence of old school mentality and modernization while emphasizing the eclectic Mendocino spirit. The label goes beyond the visual aspect by

supporting a sustainable direction, whereas wine bottles do not contain foil, embossing or varnish.

Scherrer Winery also went through a recent design change after receiving customer comments about its generic packaging. Fred Scherrer sensed the label was not capturing the essence of his complex, understated vintages, so in early 2006, he decided to undertake a label design change to showcase what was inside the bottle. His design change was very subtle yet he managed to change his message considerably.

Old Label New Label

It all boils down to an indisputable need for change. Genuine need for change is good, but if the conversion stems from simply wanting a facelift, branding consultants will caution its ineffectiveness. I’ve come across a number of wineries who constantly toy with re-branding; if sales are falling, seriously consider a new marketing strategy over re-branding. Changing a label because it looks cooler, prettier or more sophisticated does not justify a transformation.

Brands are about retaining loyalty and adding value, but it’s predominantly associated with recognition. The most powerful brands work because they are

Genuine need for change is good, but if the conversion stems from simply wanting a facelift, branding consultants will caution its ineffectiveness.

instantly recognized. Hence a word of caution: before you decide to change your label, think about why you need a change and understand the repercussions; even the most successful re-branding projects will lose customers during the transition. Additionally, very few motives are suitable for change, and label modifications do not guarantee success.

Here are my top five reasons why labels should not change:

Loyalty – changing a label of an established product without losing brand equity or loyal customers along the way is very difficult.

Recognition – Even the smallest change to a well-known identity can result in major catastrophic results and most wineries underestimate the damage they cause. Could you imagine the impact if Veuve Cliquot changed it’s orange and yellow label to blue?

Familiarity – When people purchase a product, they look for something that is familiar to them. If you make significant changes in the label, it becomes much more difficult to find. Even worse, customers may give up looking for a product and switch brands all together.

Connectivity – People make emotional connections to labels. If you change the label, you might remove the emotional connection a person has to your product. As silly as it may sound, people will buy a wine because they love the cute little duck on the label. Remove the duck, and well, the rest is history.

Market Position – Label changes may influence your product’s positioning relative to the competition; bad redesigns are certain to cause irreversible damage to your business so be careful about the decisions you make.

The bottom line is that changing a wine label impacts a producer more than they realize. If change is necessary, hire a talented team to understand the problem space, design a solution that meets the requirement, and above all, stick with a label once the design fits the image.

~ Pamela Heiligenthal

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6 Responses to “Brand Recognition: Why Labels Shouldn’t Change”

1. Jonathan Perceval Maxwell Says:
   December 22nd, 2007 at 6:37 pm

   Why labels should not change, certainly made some valuable points, but the reality is some labels just need to change, as part of a rebranding or just simply because the original label is so no longer salient. The key to any change is that it needs to be evolutionary and this really is the key having been myself involved in changing the labels of a very well established brand, the art and to some degree the integrity of any label change is about not how far you go but how little you have to change things to make some difference for the better, this is assuming that you brand has any significant equity, it it does not then wholesale change may be a good idea.

2. enobytes Says:
   December 22nd, 2007 at 8:05 pm

   Thanks For your comments Jonathan. It’s good to hear you’ve had success in changing your labels. You make a valid point that it’s not always necessary to make radical changes to make a difference; sometimes the smallest change is best.

   Regarding salient labels – on the opposing side, we have some wineries that have not changed their label in over 60+ years; take, for example Château Simone. I don’t particularly adore the label, but it’s recognizable and its position in the marketplace is stable and established, which is only achievable with years of consistency (e.g. a quality product and stable packaging).

   The point I am trying to make is that wineries should focus more on creating a quality product and not worry so much about changing their label every other year. If sales are slipping, what is the root cause? Investigate and fix it; don’t always assume it’s a marketing/label issue.

   BTW, Jonathan, since you’ve gone through the label changing process, do you have any advice you would be willing to share with others on how to make a successful transition?

   I’d love to hear everyone’s label change success and failure stories, so if you have something to share, please respond!

   Pamela

3. Jim Lit Says:
   December 25th, 2007 at 8:57 pm

   After spending 40 years in the wine & liquor business mostly as a wholesale salesman, I have dealt with label changes. Probably the worst company was Sebastiani when they would change labels on their wines such as Talus, Heritage, Nat. Creek the way a baby diaper would get changed. Then they would expect the retailer to put the new label version in and to close out the old label. Retailers were and are not that stupid.

   The worst single brand label change was Mr. Boston Brandy. That brand had been built on a distinctive label that had not been changed for years and years. Then they haul out a new label without keeping any of the face of that well-known old label and then I saw as long time consumers of that brand would not buy the new package and those who did swore they changed the taste. Even bar owners where that brand was the number one call brand even questioned whether there was a taste change. That of course, opened the door for competitors who quickly moved into a market they had never been able to penetrate.

   On the other hand, I watched Gallo change their generic wine to Livingston Cellars smoothly by making it a gradual change over a period of time. They maintained the basic struture of the label and by increasing the Livingston font and at the same time reducing the Gallo font until the Gallo name disappears off the label. They also used that formula with some of their other old line brands.

   Every marketing genius should study that model as a way to accomplish the label change they are planning.

4. enobytes Says:
   December 26th, 2007 at 12:13 am

   Excellent points Jim. Thanks for the comments and the words of wisdom.

   Your point on Mr. Boston Brandy really hits home; opening the door for competitors to move in on your territory is the last thing you want to do; unfortunately, it can happen with a major label change. Thanks for sharing.

   Pamela

5. Rick Says:
   December 27th, 2007 at 1:15 pm

   Before getting into the wine business managing brands, I used to do rebranding for professional sports teams. Pro teams used to rebrand for one reason only: to create a retail sales spike.

   Ultimately that’s why anyone would rebrand, and in the wine business it is getting so competitive that large wineries think a new label is going to increase sales. It’s a common mindset for many businesses. Not to mention there are a ton of design houses selling the idea of rebranding because they need the work.

   Unfortunately, in the end the brand becomes watered down. It’s true with sports teams, it’s true with wineries and it’s true with many businesses. The more you change the image, the more you lose customers who recognize your brand. Customers have so many brands they see throughout any given day. They remember wine labels by sight, not by name.

   The strongest brands on the planet are ones that don’t change. Coke, United, Pepsi, UPS, NIKE, Starbucks, etc… these brands are strong because they have consistent brand recognition. Jim’s comments above are right on the money. If a brand IS going to change, Gallo did the smart thing by gradually refining the look, and keeping customers who recognize their brand.

   Your brand is one of the most valuable things you have. Managing it for long term growth takes finesse and careful orchestration.

6. Travis Says:
   December 31st, 2007 at 9:57 am

   As a business manager of a wine label printing company I have seen many of the scenarios described in this thread played out on daily basis.

   There are multiple segments within the wine industry, each having it own unique business characteristics. Large wineries have a tendency to actively create new brands and re-design in hopes of gaining market share. Small botique wineries will typically tend to have a label that is crafted to reflect the wine and the estate at which it is bottled.

   With digital printing now main stream in the wine industry it is now much more cost effective for large wineries to introduce new brands into the distribution stream. At the same time small botique wineries can benefit from the same high resolution, foil and embossing, and sequential numbering that was once reserved for larger quantity labeling projects.

   Is it necessary to change a label? The anwswer is as varied as the wine industry itself. One thing is for certain with advances in technology it is getting easier and less expensive.

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