Brand is a metaphorical existence. Its the space you occupy someone's mind. A web of associations and connections. Word; Actions: Perceptions; Personality.
Branding is: how much space you take. Where you take it. What you build in the space
Rebranding can be a turning point for a brand. What are the key signs that indicate a brand needs a rebrand?
Renovation. Restart. Remind. Reaction. Redo. Refine.
Rebranding can be all of these or some of these or one of these.
A rebrand is either:
Triggered by an event—something breaks, or is about to.
Planned as a preemptive shift before a misalignment becomes a problem.
Conceptually, it's when the brand:
Loses relevance for its audience (the mental real estate shrinks).
Loses itself—it no longer knows who it is or what it wants to be.
Is misunderstood—it knows who it is, but the audience doesn’t get it.
For Example:
Words getting lost in the crowd.
Visually blending in, not standing out.
Losing sight of goals.
Shifts in product, business, or market trends.
Witchcraft is known for its strategic and thoughtful approach to branding. How do you approach rebranding while ensuring the brand retains its essence?
First: Question the question. Dive in. Out of everything it could do, the brand decided to rebrand—Why? See. Listen. Understand who they think they are, who they seem to like and who they want to be. It is not a crime to have flaws. Sometimes the delta of change is not valuable enough.
Perfect is the limit: not the destination. You can only approach the speed of light, not become it. (and never cross it... yet).
Second: Weigh it. Diagnose it.
Do some functional checks: Is there pain? What are the symptoms? These could be verbal, visual, or directional. It could be lacking Legibility/ Clarity/ Distinctiveness.
Different parts of the brand carry different weights. The logo, story, words, visuals, product, founders, place... It could be equally distributed; or skewed. Often the heaviest element is the most distinctive. Either you make it stronger so it can carry the load. Or you redistribute it—gently.
The goal is to align perception with projection.
As deeply as possible. As primally as possible.
Brand perception is deeply rooted in audience connection. How do you ensure that a rebrand resonates with both existing and new audiences?
Ask them. Tell them.
Your audience isn’t a monolith—there are micro-variants. The new audience might be a natural extension of the existing one, or you might be catching an adjacent (or completely alien) vertical.
Ask the existing audience what they remember.
Ask the new audience what they want.
Tell the existing audience who you want to be.
Tell the new audience who you were.
The gap between them is where the rebrand finds its sweet resonance.
Each rebrand is contextual. Sometimes, you leave flaws... People love the flaws. Other times, you change everything, because the brand holds no intrinsic value beyond the product.
Nobody likes change, but everyone likes the new shiny thing. What if we rebrand change to progress? Everyone loves progress.
At its core, rebranding is about being seen and acknowledged by its audience. Reminds me of a quote: "If we want the rewards of being loved, we have to submit to the mortifying ordeal of being known."
Rebranding often involves more than just a visual refresh. What other key elements do you focus on during the process?
Branding isn’t just a visual construct—it’s an abstract instinctive perception, built through countless connections and data points. A rebrand isn’t about looking different; it’s about feeling relevant.
I engage in every possible touchpoint where the brand manifests—
From the design end: words, meanings, presence, visuals.
To the business end: pricing, people, sub-brands, categories, products.
A brand isn’t what it says, it’s what it does—and how those actions are perceived.
Could you walk us through a rebranding project that you’ve worked on? What were the biggest challenges, and how did you overcome them?
The rebranding of 100x Entrepreneurs into Neon was the most intense project I’ve worked on.
Challenges:
A name conflict: A competitor with the same name had gained more recognition, despite 100x existing first.
A growth plateau: One of the most consistent startup podcasts, yet stagnant for 5+ years.
Evolving offerings: What started as a podcast and angel fund was now expanding into a publication platform and a B2B SaaS VC fund.
Lack of distinction: Visually and verbally, the brand blended into the noise.
A non-traditional founding team: A husband-wife duo from non-VC backgrounds—founders turned investors.
Now we find ourselves: Who are we? What do we do? Why do we do it?
"100x" was an ambitious, unprecedented mission. To push companies' growth beyond reason. But, while the emotions were genuine, it was exactly what every VC says: We help you grow big and make more money.
The answer was in what made their podcast special: the personal, human-first approach. Growth isn’t just numbers. There is no utopian constant climb. It’s people. It’s ups and downs. And through all of it, we’ll stick by you. We’ll shine a light on your story.
That’s when the narratives kept stacking: We make you bright. We help you stand out. We guide you through dark forests and clean highways. We are Neon. The primary question: Who are you? What do you do? Why do you do that?
In the VC and podcast space, logos don’t matter much—how often do you even see a VC’s logo? So, what if the weight of the brand wasn’t in its logo, but in its meaning?
The meaning was in colour. Walk into a meeting in a neon shirt—no one will mistake you. You are Neon.
The branding extended beyond visuals. The meaning was translated to every possible touchpoint:
→ Philosophical posters in their office, reinforcing the mission.
→ Patterns and design systems for investor events.
→ Furniture and set design for their podcast.
→ A vibrant presence in an industry known for muted, corporate aesthetics.
→ A bold motion language in the over-populated podcast-video space.
Loved or hated, but never ignored. Witnessed. That’s what made Neon Neon.
How do you measure the success of a rebrand? Are there specific metrics or indicators you rely on?
Success in rebranding is a mix of hard metrics and, personally, something less tangible—belief.
For Neon it was their subscribers and website engagement.
For Go Zero, it was visual presence and sales. These are measurable, and they indicate whether the rebrand is working in a functional sense.
But personally, beyond numbers—the true success of a rebrand is in the confidence of the people behind it. Does the client feel ownership over their new identity? Do they believe in it, even when there’s backlash (because there always will be)?
A rebrand is successful when the brand’s owners stand taller with it. When they feel like it’s theirs.
With branding trends constantly evolving, how do you future-proof a rebrand so it remains relevant for years to come?
Visual evolution is cyclical—a pendulum swinging from one extreme to another, passing through every stage in between. If we brand for a trend, we’re already scheduling the next rebrand. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes, riding a trend builds momentum, allowing a brand to pivot at the right moment.
The key to future-proofing isn’t just looking ahead—it’s looking both ways:
The brand’s origin and its future.
The market’s origin and its future.
Then, weaving threads between them.
But remember—the future is unpredictable. Empires crumble. Brands do too. Future-proofing only works within the future you envision. The past, however, is an anchor. Stay true to your roots—evolution is inevitable, but authenticity is timeless.
What role does storytelling play in rebranding? How do you weave a compelling narrative that aligns with the new brand identity?
Paradoxically, the narrative is everything; and nothing. It gives meaning to every element, ensuring that each choice has a purpose. And purpose makes a brand ownable.
But unlike a book, a brand’s story isn’t read in a fixed order. You can’t control how or when people discover different pieces of it. Some might miss entire chapters, read them out of sequence, or interpret them through their lens.
So instead of a linear tale, think of branding as a collection of standalone moments—each carrying the essence of the whole. A logo won’t tell the entire story. Neither will an ad, a tagline, or a website. When done right, Even if people experience the brand in scattered glimpses, every fragment will feel like it belongs to a larger narrative.
What advice would you give to businesses considering a rebrand? What are the common pitfalls they should avoid?
It’s hyper-contextual, but as general maxims, consider these:
Avoid “busy-body” rebranding.
When results don’t meet expectations, it’s tempting to focus on what you can control—your brand. But not every problem is a branding problem. Maybe the product needs refinement, maybe the market isn’t ready, or maybe the strategy needs tweaking. A new look might feel like progress, but if the core issue lies elsewhere, the impact will be minimal.
It’s not just plastic surgery—it’s existential introspection.
A rebrand isn’t just a new logo and a shinier mission statement. It’s about changing perception. A logo refresh might improve first impressions, but does it shift how you’re felt? A beautiful mask doesn’t make you a better actor. Surface-level changes is not a rebrand—it’s a redesign.
Don't Dilute. There is no end to refining. Not every imperfection needs fixing—some make a brand more relatable. Consider a brand known for its bold, unfiltered voice. If a rebrand polishes it too much, it risks losing the very authenticity that made people connect with it in the first place. Again, perfection is a limit—not the destination. You cannot account for everything: no one can.
It’s delicate and takes time. Trust the people you work with—or don’t work with them.
Rebranding requires introspection, vulnerability, and a willingness to let go of the present for a stronger future. It’s about navigating uncertainty, and that’s not something you rush. Re-becoming isn't a quickjob. Change takes time to happen and even more to seep in deep.
