Jaguar Land Rover, which is striving to position itself as a company solely focused on electric vehicles, announced a bold rebrand by dropping its iconic logo and launching a series of ads urging customers to “erase mediocrity.” Although the company recorded its highest profit in a decade in the same year, Jaguar Land Rover is believed to be re-evaluating its creative contract with Accenture Song – set to run until 2026 – due to backlash against what some critics called “woke” marketing.
In 2026, Jaguar Land Rover plans to relaunch the brand as fully electric and ultra-luxury. This shift means that most vehicles will be priced above £100,000. These ambitions are already having an impact – both positive and negative.
The company initiated a review of its global creative agreement after facing substantial criticism from politicians and the media in response to its late 2024 PR overhaul. The creative account is currently shared between its in-house agency Spark44 and Accenture Song through 2026. Together, they worked on the rebranding, which involved a refresh of Jaguar’s corporate identity and the removal of its historic logo.
Copy Nothing
The “Copy Nothing” campaign launched in November – reportedly in response to already declining sales – and featured a series of abstract ads in which people of various ages and ethnic backgrounds strike provocative poses in unconventional photo studios. In one ad, models pose on a pink moon’s surface behind a slogan challenging viewers to “create opulence,” while another features a figure in a red coat covering the phrase “erase mediocrity.”
The campaign sparked “discussion,” which Jaguar reportedly anticipated, though much of the reaction came from sources the company may prefer to distance itself from. While some critics pointed out that the ads didn’t feature a single car (a not-uncommon approach in abstract automotive campaigns), most criticism focused on the diversity of the models.
What exactly was considered “woke” was left to the reader’s imagination – mainstream critics like the Daily Mail and The Telegraph largely let the images speak for themselves. Similarly, anti-immigration politician Nigel Farage and Elon Musk (whose company Tesla has seen a 71% drop in profits since his alignment with the far-right Trump administration) avoided direct commentary. However, their nostalgia for the days when Jaguar symbolized the traditional British male (“Jag man”) made clear what – and whom – they were criticizing.
News that Jaguar may be considering a new creative direction was met with glee in those circles. Farage, who previously claimed that Jaguar would go bankrupt because of the rebrand—and that it “deserved to”—said: “I tried to warn you, Jaguar.” Meanwhile, the Daily Mail added that the “failed Jaguar campaign is just one of a series of woke rebrands,” comparing it to those by Nike and Coca-Cola.
Whether or not the campaign was successful remains an open question. When “Copy Nothing” launched, Jaguar’s sales were already declining—so blaming the “woke” approach would be an oversimplification. At the same time, Jaguar posted an additional £200 million in pre-tax profit in that same quarter.
Looking ahead, Jaguar may—or may not—change its creative agency, though not necessarily because it wants to reverse course. It may be simply that the brand has achieved what it set out to do. As the global auto market moves away from internal combustion engines—and the older, more conservative consumers who prefer them—the brand has sent a clear message that it wants to remain relevant to audiences beyond the traditional “Jag men,” such as Reform UK’s leadership. And it certainly hasn’t failed in that effort.
