The Hutch Pink Story ......

It doesn't matter if you are Black or white,but it surely matters if you are Orange or Pink,the same is evident with Hutch's re-branded look. Sure, the company decided to re-brand its product, get rid of the brand name Orange, as it is called in Mumbai, and bring it under the same umbrella as the other 12 circles in the country. But why pink in particular?

Designed by Ogilvy and Mather (O&M) in collaboration with London-based corporate identity firm Wolff Olins, the new colours will reflect the cohesive face of the new Hutch. So why pink and blue? Colour experts said both pink and blue are new-age colours, increasingly being used in new media such as the internet and TV.

Blue is said to be the colour of success and prosperity as well as a colour that has a universal appeal. Global majors such as IBM and Microsoft as well as Infosys use blue in their logo. Blue also depicts a connection with the masses, a link Hutch cannot afford to weaken. The cool colour depicts freshness. Similarly, pink represents strength, and yet has a young and trendy feel. It is an emotional colour used mostly during festivities such as birthdays and Valentines Day, both aspects which are important for the telecom firm

Hutch decided to change colour for two reasons. First, because of the decision to re-brand Orange as Hutch, and with the colour being such an integral part of the brand name, a change was required. But even otherwise, with Hutch sharpening its peg and penetrating the rural market, it was time to refresh the brand , and the re-branding exercise was being discussed for six months or so prior to the actual execution of it.

The execution involved, on a purely communicative level, outdoor advertising, television, print media, and even signage - changing the signs on every Hutch shop across the country. Radio Mirchi blared out "It's pink!" instead of "It's hot!" for a while. As for internal changes, everything from the Web site to the letterhead to the CEO's visiting card, the uniforms and the interiors of the Hutch outlets were revamped and had to be changed to the new colour. But is the colour a little too loud for a brand that caters to a wide cross-section of people? Well, when the product was launched in the UK ten years ago with orange as the defining colour, it was very unusual for a public that was used to sober colours such as black, white, fawn, navy blue and so on, But it was a brave colour at the time, and similarly now. Pink is the new orange, really, and very few other companies would have the style and confidence to pull it off.