Luxury-brand holding company PPR rebrands as Kering

The identity change, pending shareholder approval in June, is meant to reflect the group's move from a distribution conglomerate to a company focused on luxury and sport lifestyle brands, according to the company.

The campaign includes a global TVC (above), which will be broadcast in North America, Europe, and Asia at the end of this month, as well as print executions and an extensive social-media campaign, including activities on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Vimeo, Sina Weibo and Youku.

The company has also engaged with a fashion blogger, Garance Doré, who for several months starting in April will present videos, translated into five languages, that portray Kering's "distinctive way of nourishing the imagination of its brands".

The brand-name can be pronounced as ‘caring’ in English, and is meant to express the company culture of "taking care of our brands, people, stakeholders and the environment", according to the company. The root ‘ker’, means 'home' in the group's original home, Brittany in France.

The Chinese name is Kering Kai Yun, in which Kai Yun refers to "an open sky which leaves room for the possible and demolishes barriers to imagination and dreams". It is also a synonym for good luck, according to Kering.

However, as BloombergBusinessweek has pointed out, the word translates as 'dry' or 'dried' in Indonesian: as in kering kentang (dried potatoes).

The owl emblem is "a discreet and protective animal" that suits "a group that spots potential and guides and nurtures its brands and people", the company said.

CREDITS

Brand strategy and signature: Dragon Rouge
Visual identity (name, logo), graphic universe and website: Havas Lifestyle
Launch campaign: TBWA\Corporate