Why do companies change the name of products after years of using a name?

Question

Like remeber when starburst used to be opal fruits!
Snickers used to be named something else!
Jif is now cif!
oil of ulay is now oil of olay!
are there any of foods ive missed out coz im sure theres more?

Answer 1

Yep, as people have said: there are two reasons.

1. Marketing. It makes the product interesting again.
2. It has other names in different countries, and they want to use the same pictures in adverts.

In times to come we will all know Lynx by the name Axe, and we will buy Opel cars instead of Peugeots (I think, something like that). There's probably a few more too.

Answer 2

Sometimes they have to change the name because it's racist.

Like marmalade and the little golliwog guy, Black Jacks are now called "not very white Jacks". Black pudding is now called "darkish in colour pudding" and Minstrels are now called "some chocolate"

Chocolate as a whole has come under scrutiny because it is brown. The Government is trying to get white chocolate to be a bit pinker in colour so that it looks more like white skin therefore eliminating any prejudice about chocolate and black people.

A recent Nestle flop was a half dark, half white chocolate bar, however it was considered too "taboo" for the current climate of racism.

Answer 3

Rationalisation of packaging:

They sold the same product under a different name in a different market, snickers is not a new name it was the one used in the rest of Europe, if you have the same pack for everywhere it cost you less becuase you can order more of the same pack you dont have to pay so many Quality control staff etc.

Answer 4

Yeah Snickers used to be Marathon.

Starburst were Opal Fruits I think.

Answer 5

Snickers used to be Marathon didn't it?

Apparently, it was done in favour of our European neighbors who had issues pronouncing the 'j' in jif and 'o' in olay. Although I don't think 'cif' sounds too pleasant!!

Answer 6

Its so that the same product is known by the same name all over the world.

Marathons were only Marathons in the UK, so they changed their name to Snickers to conform with everywhere else. That way when you go abroad, you can still buy your favourite product.

Good idea if you ask me.

Answer 7

If you are doing well, you may not want to change your name (need to stay true to the loyal customer base). With said, you want to also resonate with potential new customers. I'd say add a tag. Something like Closet Solutions: Add organization to your home. You could also change your logo a bit...maybe.

Answer 8

I recon it's cos they've got certain rules and clauses they've committed themselves to regarding the product upon licencing and now if they wish to push it to international trade or change the concept or colour or perhaps the way it's distributed or produced they have to make a new product all together. it's possible that there are numerous companies behind this one and that one may have bancrupted or finished it's contract and they've reabsorbed it and changed the name. Politics of money

Answer 9

To keep up with the times, but anyone who was around before the name changes, I find tend to stick to the old name, I know I do. Why fix something that's not broke, what a waste of money.

Answer 10

Snickers used to be called 'Marathon' bars, and did you know they once (ages ago mind) changed the name of 'Coco pops' to something else (cant remember what) but people stopped buying them, so they had to changed the name back, or they probably would have gone out of business. lol