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PepsiCo's New Look Is a Bet You'll See Beyond the Soda
PepsiCo unveils its first corporate rebranding in nearly 25 years to shift its public identity from a soda maker to a diversified food and beverage company.
Key Points
- PepsiCo unveils its first corporate rebranding in nearly 25 years to shift its public identity from a soda maker to a diversified food and beverage company.
- The change addresses low brand awareness, as only 21% of consumers can name a PepsiCo-owned brand other than its namesake cola.
- The new strategy repositions the company from a "house of brands" to a "branded house," putting the parent company's identity front and center.
- To support its new image, PepsiCo is acquiring health-conscious brands like Poppi and Siete Foods to bolster its wellness portfolio.
PepsiCo is rebranding for the first time in nearly 25 years, a major push to fix a glaring problem: most people don't know it owns brands like Doritos, Quaker, and Gatorade. The new identity is designed to present PepsiCo as a diversified food and beverage giant, not just a soda company.
All about awareness: The overhaul stems from a realization that only 21% of consumers can name a PepsiCo brand other than its namesake cola. That awareness gap is happening as the company's flagship soda loses ground; in the U.S., the full-sugar version of Pepsi has fallen from the No. 2 to the No. 4 soda by volume in recent years.
Food, drinks, smiles: The new design ditches the familiar red-and-blue logo for an abstract look with symbols for food, water, and sustainability. It's paired with a new tagline, “Food. Drinks. Smiles,” and a lowercase typeface meant to feel more approachable, according to the company's announcement.
Beyond the soda aisle: The move marks a clear shift in strategy, as PepsiCo itself steps into the spotlight instead of letting individual products be the heroes. Analysts see it as a move from a "house of brands" to a "branded house," where the parent company's identity is front and center.
PepsiCo is betting a new corporate skin can convince consumers—and investors—that its future is bigger than its past, but a logo can only do so much if the products themselves don't connect. To back up its new image, PepsiCo has been on a health-conscious shopping spree, snapping up brands like prebiotic soda maker Poppi and grain-free chip company Siete Foods to bolster its wellness credentials.
