Joanna and Zach sit down with Adam for a special episode of The VinePair Podcast, and the subject is simple: why rebranding can backfire. The trio discusses whether changing a bottle’s look can confuse customers, and they raise a question that cuts straight to the heart of marketing: when you change the package, are you also touching what’s inside? The episode opens with a straightforward premise: a new bottle shape, a new label, a new design. The question they’re asking is whether those changes mean anything at all.
What They Drank
The drinks themselves tell their own story. Zach went with the 2014 Gramercy Cellars “Forgotten Hills” Syrah. Joanna chose Dewar’s Distillery Edition Scotch. Adam opted for Chopin Family Reserve Vodka. That selection — a heavy red wine, a single malt Scotch, and a clear spirit — suggests a mix of serious wine talk and lighter spirits, a pairing that moves between earthy reds and clean, clear pours. It’s a conversation that could easily stay light, but the topic pulls it back toward something more serious.
The Core Question
The episode raises a simple question: when you change a product’s packaging, are you also changing the product itself? That’s the tension at the center of the discussion. A new label, a new bottle shape, a new design — these changes can signal freshness. But they can also signal trouble. The trio spends the bulk of the episode working through exactly what that trouble might look like.
The Discussion
The trio discusses how a rebrand can go wrong. They point toward the dangers of moving away from an established design or aesthetic, noting that changing the package can serve to confuse and even alienate consumers. The list of risks is short but pointed:
- Changing the package can signal a change in the product inside.
- Customers who see a new bottle may wonder if the wine inside has changed.
- Longtime fans of a beloved look may feel betrayed when it disappears.
Each of these risks comes from the same place: a customer’s relationship with a brand is built on trust, and trust takes years to earn and seconds to lose. That last line is worth sitting with. Years to earn, seconds to lose — it’s a brutal equation for any marketer, and the episode spends its runtime unpacking exactly what it means.
Our View
This is a story about branding that reads as a story about trust. A new label is a promise, and a broken promise is easy to spot. The lesson is simple: when you change a package, make sure the product inside hasn’t changed too. Customers notice when a brand betrays them, and they remember. The best brands know that a new label is a chance to surprise, not to confuse.
Source material: “The VinePair Podcast: When Rebrands Go Wrong,” VinePair.
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