If you look for a product in a foreign store and can’t find it, it may be distributed “under a pseudonym” in that country.
Sometimes, you can also notice a product that has a familiar logo and packaging on it. They use the same logo, colors, even the same slogan but written in a different name.
A successful global strategy includes brand localization which localizes the company’s website, product information, services, and marketing strategies to adapt them to local cultures. So companies feel the need to change it depending on how well the brand name translates into the local language, to capture the attention of new customers.
Let’s find out which world-famous brands had changed their names In other countries and their reasons for doing so.
Burger King – Hungry Jack’s
Burger King first appeared in the USA in 1954 and has since started to open new restaurants under this name all over the world. However, before entering the Australian market in 1971, the company’s executives found out that the original name had already been trademarked by a restaurant in Adelaide.
The Burger King’s Australian name: Hungry Jack’s is derived from a pre-existing trademark that the company had already registered and is from its franchisee “Jack Cowin”, and when the name Burger King became available, the people were already used to “Hungry Jack’s” so the company just sticked with it.
Axe – Lynx
Axe was founded by Unilever company in France in 1983, but when they try to expand its industry in body products, the name has already been used by other brands in other countries.
In addition, in English-speaking countries, it’s hard to associate the word “axe” with perfumery. So the company took the name Lynx to distribute the products in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and China.
Danone – Dannon
Danone was founded in 1919 by Spanish pharmacist Isaac Carasso. He named the brand after his son Daniel (Danone is his family nickname), the world’s largest maker of dairy products.
But when entering the US market, company executives decided to make the brand name more “American” because the former name was wrongly pronounced by Americans, who divided it into two words: “dan” and “one”.
Now the name Dannon is associated with Danone’s products in America. It is now called Dannon Milk Products.
Rexona – Sure
Rexona is a antiperspirants and deodorants brand of the Unilever company. The product was originally from Australia that is called “Rexona” in most of Europe (being the original brand name) but has multiple localized names.
In the United Kingdom, Ireland and India it is known as “Sure”, in the USA it is called as “Degree”, while in Japan as “Rexona”, and they call it “Shield” in South Africa.
Mr Clean – Meister Proper – Monsieur Propre – Maestro Limpio – Mastro Lindo – Flash
Mr. Clean is an all-purpose cleaner that has numerous renames in its brand. This cleaning agent’s name has been translated into the local language in almost every large country.
Here are just a few, for the USA and Canada it is called Mr. Clean, while Meister Proper in germany, Monsieur Propre in France, Maestro Limpio in Mexico and Latin America, Mastro Lindo in Italy. While the UK and Ireland just simply call it Flash.
Crest – Blend-a-med
Crest toothpaste has been manufactured by Procter&Gamble since 1955.
But it is called Blend-a-med in countries such as Germany, Poland, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Russia, and some other more.
Dove – Galaxy
Dove Candies & Ice Cream was a Chicago-based brand and Galaxy was a UK firm, it both started off as independent confectionery companies. Then global confectioner Mars Inc. purchased both these companies and slowly, their product lines were unified.
It is called Dove in most countries all over the world but it is distributed as Galaxy in UK, Egypt, and India.
Twix – Raider
Twix is a chocolate bar and was originally called Raider. It was first produced in the UK in 1967.
In 1979, the product was imported to the USA under the name Twix. However, it is still sold under the brand name Raider in European countries.
Lays – Walkers
Walkers was founded in the UK in 1948. Then in 1989, PepsiCo, the producer of Lay’s chips, purchased Walkers Crisps. After that, the British chips rebrand the design with Lay’s logo but kept the same name, Walkers.
The brand also uses local names while it is called “Walkers” in the UK, it goes under the name “Smith’s” in Australia for marketing purposes, “Sabritas” for Mexicans, and a bag of “Tapuchips” in Israel.