Last week I highlighted the need for a brand to stay consistently consistent. This week I was shocked by the yellow and pink, NOT green, Starbucks billboards peppered around the Houston highways. It brought to mind a another attribute of great branding which is staying fervently relevant. The billboards are signaling visually several priorities that Schultz has underscored upon his return to company leadership, spearheaded by the new brew, Pike Place Roast.
Staying consistently consistent yet fervently relevant presents a dynamic tension that lays at the heart of great branding. How does Starbuck's recent rollout of its vintage logo look and simple bright billboard do both? In this case staying relevant for Starbucks means "going back to the future." The new logo (we don't know how long it will be around) is a slight modification of the company's original. It brings an authentic, original feel to a brand that has been attacked for its aggressive growth which lost its authenticity with its ubiquity. Yet, the billboards got my attention with their unexpected, almost florescent feel. Consistently consistent and fervently relevant at the same time? While many "experts" are wincing at the move (see the gif below by Von Glitschka), I liked the attention-getting simplicity and boldness of the new campaign as well as the "grounded" look of the brown, return to dry roast look. Not to mention the clear reminder that the chick in the middle is really a mermaid!