Many of the products we are dropping into our shopping carts during the weekly grocery run have companioned us since our earliest childhood. Often, they go so far back that even our parents — sometimes grandparents — have trusted these brands and employed them as household staples: Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes, A.1. Steak Sauce, Domino Sugar, Campbell Soup, Reese’s, Sabrett Hot Dogs, Cheerios, Snickers, Heinz Ketchup, Cheez-it crackers, and many more, of course. What many of them have in common is that their visual brand experience (most prominently reflected in their packaging design) has hardly changed since it first originated, often several decades ago. There seems to be a convincing reason for that: These brands represent lasting values; they convey to us the timeless qualities and benefits our parents and grandparents already valued about them. Many of them perform exceptionally well and continue to be leaders in their market. A major move away from those established formats and packaging designs that we have become so familiar with could permanently damage the trusted relationship. But, at the same time, individual brands and sometimes whole categories that were once beloved by a specific consumer segment become irrelevant as consumer behaviors evolve and demands change.
AT WHAT POINT DO ICONIC, CLASSIC BRANDS RUN INTO THE DANGER OF APPEARING OUTDATED AND BECOMING IRRELEVANT?