PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
Some of the industry’s most established brands are getting a makeover and revising their ethos as competition intensifies.
Over the past month, Lenovo, Cooler Master and Corsair have made public changes to their businesses – while HP revealed a new logo for its upcoming split-off HP Enterprise arm back in April.
Logitech has also announced a new rebrand this week.
While tweaking a logo can seem like a minor change, beneath the surface there are some major changes these companies are making to the way they run their businesses.
Lenovo describes its new logo(s) as more ‘personal, engaging and consumer-centric’ and reflective of Lenovo’s personality, incorporating its ‘rich heritage of acquisitions and original innovation DNA’.
But the different coloured logos are just a physical mark of a strategic shift within the company, positioning itself not just PC-only anymore, but what it describes as “one of the world’s leading consumer electronics companies”. Lenovo recently announced its first streaming device, PC on a stick, smartwatch and Smart Shoes concepts, as well as new SAN storage arrays. Its smartphones and convertibles are selling strongly, and the firm is even exploring emerging areas like robotics (read more in our interview on page 28). The new logo might as well scream: “We’re not the old PC Lenovo you knew.”
Lenovo’s big rival, HP, is making an arguably even bigger corporate change. It is splitting its personal computer and printer business from its corporate hardware and other services. The latter will be know as HP Enterprise, which has received a new logo.
Like Lenovo, HP says simplicity was important in its logo. “That’s what we’re going to be about – easy to do business with and precise in our work, our engineering and our innovation,” says HP CEO Meg Whitman.
On the components and accessories side, Cooler Master outlined a revised ethos at Computex 2015, saying it wants to break new ground in the way PCs are designed. It unveiled a customisable MasterCase featuring a clip-and-click panel, allowing users to vertically adjust or entirely remove drive cages, allowing for multiple system configurations. To mark this new type of product, Cooler Master revealed its new ‘Make It Yours’ slogan.
Corsair, meanwhile, has ditched its gaming logo featuring two swords, which was dubbed a ‘tramp stamp’ by some PC gamers, sparking an online petition. Corsair listened and has instead revealed a snazzier version of its traditional sails branding.
As the PC market continues to evolve, with traditional desktop sales down and all-in-ones, streaming devices and convertibles on the rise, brands have to move with the times – and we’re sure we’ll see more of that in the years to come.
