Phew! At last we have got some time to update the blog- the studio has been pretty busy to say the least. Talking about time we like to give some new designs a bit of time to settle down in our heads. Sometimes the things that look wrong and jar at the outset start to look truly great once the initial newness has worn off. Chris Bangle’s BMW designs are now looking inspirational when you consider the range that preceded his and where BMW car designs were heading prior to his appointment. The 2012 London Olympics logo will we are sure, by the time of the Olympics, really stand up as a great bit of communication. It would have been so easy to have produced a safe, generic identity that would have blended in with every other event; in any case the genius of such a thinly disguised sex act in a logo brilliantly sums up Britishness in a way none of us could consciously articulate. And so we come on to the new Subaru Impreza- the rally inspired road car that more than any other car of recent times sums up the ‘Marmite’ syndrome in people (you either love it or hate it). You either think it is everything an exciting car should be and conjures up ideas of motor sport and pine forests, or you just think no……no, no ,no , no. So in the infinite wisdom of Subaru and following Ford’s world car approach (Ford who incidentally are losing money like there is no tomorrow) decided that what we really need is a magnolia approach, something neutral that appeals to everybody. This is the new Subaru Impreza. Aside from the fact that their idea of a neutral car looks like a rehashed Mazda, Subaru may have really deeply damaged their brand. In the past it was so clear to customers what the brand stood for; owners knew they were very different from those that wouldn’t touch the car with a barge pole. In a potential take-over bid the brand value would have been high and very clearly defined.
Only time will tell, but in our opinion this attempt to win more customers and be more profitable has went very wrong. We will get back to you in about 5 years on this one.