Refreshing a legacy brand is one of the hardest jobs in marketing. Move too slowly and the brand feels stuck in the past; move too fast and you risk alienating the customers who made it famous. A new episode of Adweek’s Adspeak brought four leaders together to answer a sharper question: how do you turn a legacy brand into a cultural icon without losing what made it iconic?
Host Brittaney Kiefer led the conversation with Amanda Earley, brand director at Brawny; Jaime Robinson, co-founder and former chief creative officer of Joan Creative; Christy Hoskins, a CPG and consumer durables marketing leader; and Jessica Henrichs, CEO of DonerColle Partners. Their case studies ranged from La-Z-Boy to Brawny, and the throughline was consistent: heritage is not a weakness to hide.
Start with product truth, not a new look
The panel’s central warning is that a brand refresh cannot outrun the product. Product innovation must precede any identity work, so the new positioning is a promise the product can actually keep. La-Z-Boy’s breakthrough, as the guests discuss, came from leaning into a genuine strength rather than chasing a trendier category image. The panel calls this the “lean into your strengths” principle.
That rule applies well beyond furniture or paper towels. Before commissioning a new logo, campaign or mascot change, marketers should ask whether the product experience gives consumers a reason to believe the new story.
Use social as the low-risk testing ground
One of the most practical takeaways is sequencing. Earned, culturally relevant activations should come before a full rebrand, and social platforms are the lowest-risk place to test how a legacy mascot or character should evolve before committing to broader campaigns.
- Audit brand history to find authentic strengths instead of running from nostalgia.
- Pressure-test beloved icons through small social experiments first.
- Involve consumers and stakeholders early to reduce backlash risk.
- Treat a rebrand as the final step, not the first one.
Why the sequence matters
A refresh is expensive and public. When it misfires, a brand has spent money and invited scrutiny. Involving consumers and stakeholders early can help prevent backlash, the panel says, because people feel ownership of the icons being changed.
For agencies and in-house teams alike, this changes the conversation. Creative partnerships become stronger when they are built around unlocking existing equity rather than pitching sudden makeovers. The goal is to make change feel natural, not disruptive.
A practical gut check
Marketers can simplify this into three questions before any legacy refresh: Is the product innovation in market or close enough to prove the claim? Have we tested the story with earned activations and social experiments? Are consumers involved in the journey before the big reveal? If the answer to any is no, slowing down may be the most strategic move.
That means building evidence through product improvement, cultural activations and social listening before making big commitments. A legacy brand does not need to abandon its familiar characters or history; it needs to update the product and test the story in small, reversible ways first.
Source: Adweek
