Jaguar to shed old man’s image in NW campaign
THE UK boss of Jaguar is trialling a new marketing drive in the North West in a bid to rid the brand of its “old man’s image.”
Geoff Cousins said the Manchester Celebrates Jaguar campaign, devised by Manchester company Journey9 would be rolled out to other cities if it is a succeeds.
He said: “Next month Jaguar is going to be taking over Manchester – it’s a really exciting time for the business and the brand. It’s the first part of our transformation.”
Jaguar will combine high profile advertising with event sponsorships, track days and the release of a special short film, shot in Cheshire by Hollywood director Derrick Borte, as part of the campaign.
Manchester’s status as the original modern city and its sporting heritage, also fit well with Jaguar’s brand image, Mr Cousins said.
“Jaguar has always been seen as the old man’s car, the old man’s brand. Our challenge is to break out of that.”
He said the new products, the hugely successful XF, launched two years ago, and the XJ, which goes on sale next month, were driving the brand into a new era.
He said the XF made a great case study on how one product can revive a brand.
Sales last month- including advanced orders for the XJ, were up 94.6% on the same month in March.
“The ethos of the new models is design, performance and luxury,” he said.
Aligning Jaguar with popular and successful sports stars such as David Beckham, Liverpool and England footballer Steven Gerrard, athlete Denise Lewis, and England cricket captain Andrew Strauss, is another important strand of the strategy, Mr Cousins said.
“I think sport is the next step to take Jaguar to the next level,” he added.
As well as using top sportsmen and women to promote the brand, the company, owned by Indian giant Tata, has established the Jaguar Academy to support and recognise young British sporting talent.
A fund has been set up to provide bursaries to rising young stars, Mr Cousins said.
The launch event at the Lowry Hotel was attended by a clutch of key business people including Maurice Watkins, senior partner of law firm Brabners Chaffe Street and a director of Manchester United, technology entrepreneur Steve Purdham and David Chell from Manchester City.
