How businesses can rebrand without losing customer trust

Companies like Hooters and Victoria’s Secret are trying to adapt to changing consumer expectations while attracting a new generation of customers. But the same challenge applies to businesses of every size: how do you rebrand without losing the customers who helped build it?

Joining us on this episode of Business Trends Today is Sheila Rondeau, CEO of MOGXP, an experiential marketing and brand strategy agency, and author of The Art of Experiential Marketing. Rondeau has spent her career helping brands build deep consumer connections, including playing a key role in building Vitaminwater into a brand powerful enough that Coca-Cola chose to buy it rather than compete with it.

Why face-to-face connection still matters

At MOGXP, the strategy is built around the belief that in-person engagement still matters, even in a digital-first world.

“In a world where everyone wants to be digital, people really like the engagement, the face-to-face piece of it,” Rondeau said.

"If you want people to try your product, if you want them to touch it, feel it, smell it, taste it, the best thing to do it is in person."

Whether through sampling programs, surprise-and-delight campaigns or VIP-style consumer experiences, she says putting brands and consumers together directly can change behavior.

“Anytime you put brands and consumers together, it changes buying habits,” Rondeau said.

That approach helped Vitaminwater build demand from the ground up, according to Rondeau. Its field marketing team created enough consumer demand that convenience stores began requesting the product through their supply chains. Eventually, Coca-Cola decided to buy the brand rather than continue giving up shelf space to a competitor.

For brands trying to build demand, Rondeau says the right approach depends on the type of interaction. Some brands may benefit from one-on-one engagement, while others may rely on one ambassador, a group experience or a VIP-style activation.

When a rebrand is not the real problem

Many small business owners eventually reach a point where they feel their brand or messaging may no longer connect the way it once did. But Rondeau says leaders should first determine whether the brand is actually the problem.

She says businesses need to ask whether customers are receiving the message, responding to it and still engaging with the company’s core identity. If not, the issue may be deeper than marketing.

“Do you have a culture issue? Do you have a financial issue? Do you have a distribution issue?”

Those problems can have a major impact on how a brand is perceived, but she says they are often blamed on marketing or branding. Before launching a rebrand, leaders need to understand whether customers are rejecting the brand itself or reacting to a larger business issue.

The danger of changing too much

Asked about brands like Hooters and Victoria’s Secret, Rondeau says both examples show how difficult it can be to evolve with changing consumer expectations without losing authenticity.

Hooters, she says, gradually changed over the years and is now trying to return to more of its original beach-style restaurant and bar identity after moving too far from its roots.

“They’ve moved so far one direction, they’ve alienated a lot of people,” Rondeau said. “People aren’t looking for the same thing. It is no longer considered acceptable to sexualize things as they have been doing.”

Rondeau says Hooters has lost market share as longtime customers have changed their habits. The company has also struggled to bring in a younger crowd. To grow again, she says, the brand needs to become more entertaining and more inviting to a wider audience.

“You want to be current on what people are talking about. You do not want to do knee-jerk reactions.”

Victoria’s Secret, on the other hand, has always had a particular brand identity. But Rondeau says the company followed cultural shifts too aggressively instead of staying authentic.

She says cultural trends often move like a pendulum, swinging in one direction before eventually moving back toward the middle. Brands that react too quickly can end up alienating customers or confusing the market.

Rondeau points to Ben & Jerry’s as an example of consistency. Whether customers agree with its politics or not, she says they know what the brand stands for.

“Stay authentic to who you are,” Rondeau said.

How small businesses can modernize without losing trust

For smaller businesses that do not have large marketing budgets, Rondeau says the best place to start is with the voice of the customer.

That means looking closely at reviews, including competitor reviews, to understand what customers are actually saying. But she says business owners should not focus only on the most negative reviews or the glowing five-star ones.

“You want to look at the ones in the middle and see what people are talking about that matter to them,” Rondeau said. “And then you determine what adjustments you need to make.”

Those middle reviews can reveal what customers care about most and what changes would make the biggest impact. Rondeau says the goal is to use customer feedback as guidance without making a knee-jerk reaction that pulls the business away from its core identity.

What successful reinvention looks like

For business owners considering a refresh or repositioning, Rondeau says a successful reinvention should strengthen the relationship with existing customers, not push them away.

“It should not alienate your existing customers and the ones who brought you to the table,” Rondeau said.

Instead, a strong rebrand should bring core customers closer while opening the business to new audiences, new offerings or deeper customer spending.