Vera Bradley’s New Image: A Look Into a Brand’s Rebrand

Vera Bradley has announced a “brand transformation” to stay modern for its customers, using marketing strategies to utterly rebrand the company.

The popular bag brand first teased its new reproach through TikTok on July 9, with the caption “Rediscover Vera Bradley” letting TikTok users know that something was coming. Two days after the brand’s initial tease, it used similar marketing on another social media platform: Instagram. Vera Bradley posted with the caption “July 11: Don’t miss the debut of a new, inspiring era of self-expression.” Multiple other posts were made on its social media pages to show the brand’s new change. 

To top off all the social media amplification, Vera Bradley made an official press release statement with plans for transformation. The brand hopes the ideas will help restore its relevance. The rebrand involves a new logo, in-store renovations, and an updated website.  

The transformation has been officially coined “Project Restoration”.    

A Celebrity Face  

Vera Bradley has changed its brand by having a product line that helps “celebrate customers’ unique sense of style and self-exploration.” The idea was to have a familiar face help endorse the project. Vera Bradley has secured the help of actress Zooey Deschanel to serve as the face of the brand’s “fall creative campaign”.  

In the press release, Deschanel made a statement about her involvement with the brand. “I love what the Vera Bradley brand stands for – uplifting women and helping them express themselves. Plus, all of the patterns and colors make the brand fun to wear,” said Deschanel.  

In addition to hiring Deschanel, the brand is expanding their selection with new bag styles, and they are also adding new “enhancements” to their other styles, like the brand’s duffel bags and backpacks.  

Jacqueline Ardey, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) highlighted the decision to focus on the next chapter of the business in the press release.  

“After months of analyzing our business, our competition, our customers, and industry trends, we made the strategic decision to pivot priorities and consciously invest in elevating and reinvigorating Vera Bradley in order to restore our brand relevance,” Ardey said.   

In an interview with Modern Retail, Ardey and Alison Hiatt, the Chief Marketing Officer of Vera Bradley, discussed the changes to the company, which have been in the works after 18 months of research.  

“ ‘Project Restoration’ is a key to driving long-term profitable growth,” Ardey said.  

The company has spent time and effort revamping many elements of Vera Bradley to ensure that the brand stays relevant in business.   

Capturing the Gen Z Audience  

There are other strategies being implemented. In a press release released on Aug. 27, 2024, it was announced that Vera Bradley was collaborating with Urban Outfitters, a lifestyle retailer, to launch a “vintage-inspired capsule collection.”  

The collection features six different re-editions of Vera Bradley’s designs and comes with three new patterns.  

Hiatt stated that both companies are committed to “self-expression, connection, and creativity,” as well as empowering customers to express their unique, individual style.  

“Vera Bradley is such a uniquely multi-generational brand, and with Gen Z increasingly discovering our products, partnering with Urban Outfitters – a brand that this generation loves – was such a natural fit,” Hiatt noted.    

The collaboration with Urban Outfitters will pave the way for future plans with both brands.  

What is a Rebrand?  

To understand the importance of Vera Bradley’s rebrand, it is first important to identify what a rebrand is.

According to The Economic Times, “rebranding is the process of changing the corporate image of an organization.”

In other words, a rebrand is a marketing plan that often relies on pre-existing brand changes, such as a new name, a new logo or symbol, or new designs. Generally, the brand tries to make a new identity for itself so that it can appear more appealing to a consumer.   

Vera Bradley has done many of these things, like changing the brand’s logo and changing bag designs. 

Companies rebrand for different reasons. One common reason is so that a brand can better connect with its customers.

There are two ways that companies rebrand.

The first way is called Proactive rebranding, which is when a company sees that there is space for the brand to grow and be innovative, take off with new businesses and/or customers, and reconnect with existing customers.

The second is called Reactive rebranding. This is done when an existing brand has to be discontinued or changed, usually for reasons such as mergers, legal issues, negative publicity, and aims to beat the competition.

In Vera Bradley’s case, the brand is mainly focused on using initiatives to connect with customers.   

A Simple Start: The History of Vera Bradley   

To better understand Vera Bradley, it is important to note the history of the brand and how it came to be.  

Vera Bradley has a rich history spanning over 40 years. It began in 1982 when two friends, Pat Miller and Barbara Baekgaard, noticed that there was little colorful luggage in the airport. They sought to change the bland suitcases that they saw to something more eye-catching.   

In an interview with Classic Chicago Magazine, Baekgaard recalled that fateful day in the airport. “As we looked at the bags in the airport, none had any feminine detail. We wished for a simple and attractive getaway bag with several compartments and preferably in a bright color,” Baekgaard said.    

The pair started with $500 and used the sum to build the company from the ground up. They named it Vera Bradley after Baekgaard’s mother. Then, they gathered fabric from a local store and got to work creating their first duffel bag on a ping pong table in Baekgaard’s basement.   

To gain traction, they sent the duffel bag samples to their daughters at college. Soon enough, they were receiving orders, and they turned Baekgaard’s basement into a home business. According to Classic Chicago Magazine, they sold $10,000 in their first year, and by their third year, the number had risen to $1 million.

In 2007, Baekgaard and Miller opened their first store in Natick, Massachusetts, and in 2010, the brand went public. Since its initial release, Vera Bradley has expanded tremendously, collaborating with big names like Disney and Starbucks.   

The Brand’s Other Endeavors

The brand has also created the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer, a non-profit organization that raises funds for breast cancer research around the nation. The organization was originally formed because one of Vera Bradley’s first sales representatives, Mary Sloan, passed away from breast cancer. Since then, the Foundation has represented its mission in the Vera Bradley brand.  

Besides great success and philanthropic efforts, the brand prides itself on having significant key values, including authenticity, positivity, tenacity, and hospitality, among others. With these values, the company strives to celebrate “what makes us who we are,” to approach situations with optimism, to pursue goals, and to make all feel welcome.  

Vera Bradley’s Popularity 

Even if individuals do not know the Vera Bradley name, the colors, shapes, and patterns of its products have become recognizable worldwide. People have been adding eye-catching accessories like handbags and travel bags to their everyday wear for years, and usage has expanded across generations as well. From students wearing backpacks to school to parents purchasing the products for travel, the brand has remained accessible to all who want to partake.  

It is particularly known for its colorful fabrics. Rob Wallstrom, the company’s previous President and CEO, attested to this in an interview with Forbes, in which he described the brand’s patterns and notability.  

“The patterns elicit an emotional response and bring happiness and individuality that customers crave,” Wallstrom said. “And it is also about the values built into the brand and the deeper meanings of happiness and joy.”    

In 2023, there was a mini resurgence of the brand when Gen Z and millennial TikTok creators were using their colorful, floral Vera Bradley bags from years ago. Users like Darcy McQueeny and Madisson Lynn were excited about the idea of Vera Bradley making a comeback. They both took to TikTok to show off their Vera Bradley products.  

Before the rebrand in early 2024, TikTokers were already discussing the Vera Bradley comeback — particularly how some vintage, quilted designs fit into trends like “coastal grandma.” For instance, users like Consistently Caroline and Kiera Jacob informed their viewers about the resurgence of quilted bags.  

Do Rebrands Actually Work?     

With Vera Bradley’s new transformation, it begs the question: do these strategies really work for brands? 

Like Vera Bradley, other brands have used rebranding as a marketing strategy to stay modern and relevant for the average consumer. Rebranding can be good for a business, but at the same time, it’s a risky task. There are companies that have had successful rebrands, but there are others that have not. 

In a story by Platform Magazine, the fashion brand Abercrombie & Fitch started rebranding efforts over the course of 2023 and into 2024. The company went from famously being the apparel brand with shirtless guys and having “loud sex appeal” to making itself more of an “inclusive brand.”

Abercrombie even changed its logo. Removing the moose from the logo, the brand decided to go for simplicity and age up.  n other words, the brand would be turned into a young millennial brand, instead of a teen-focused brand.   

The store’s attire would be varied enough to include activewear, wedding guest dresses, pajamas, and more. Abercrombie also started selling office wear.  

One item in particular called the “Sloane Pant” grew in popularity on TikTok and allowed for a more diverse audience to be influenced. Abercrombie eventually developed pant styles for every body type, which boosted their market even more.

By 2023, Abercrombie produced its highest revenue ever and plans to hit $5 billion in yearly sales by 2025.  

When Rebrands Do Not Work

Another brand that has tried rebranding is Tropicana. In January of 2009, the juice brand decided to rebrand its orange juice carton packaging in North America and invested $35 million to do new packaging.  

The change quickly backfired, with the company receiving criticism from customers who did not enjoy the new look.   

Sales ended up dropping by 20%, and the packaging failure caused Tropicana to lose $30 million.   

By February 2009, the brand announced that it would return to the original design, and eventually, the packaging went back to normal.   

Because of the rebrand, Tropicana lost over $50 million.  

Fan Reactions to Vera Bradley’s Rebrand 

Considering the success and failure of other brands, one wonders how effective Vera Bradley’s rebrand will be. Shortly after the initial announcement of the rebrand, customers had different thoughts and opinions about the company’s new strategies.    

Some Vera Bradley fans were not too thrilled, and they voiced their opinions in the comments on Vera Bradley’s Facebook page.  

One user wrote, “This is so disappointing. I’ve been collecting Vera for two decades. I could understand introducing a new line, but rebranding everything is an alienating mistake.”  

Another dismayed customer commented, “If I wanted to spend that much on a bag, I would go to the luxury brands that have been doing this for years. Whoever made this decision has no understanding of Vera Bradley’s customers. Personally, the brand has been going downhill for a while, but this will be the end of what used to be a great company.” 

The feedback was not all negative, however. Some users expressed excitement about the new changes, including one user who commented: “It is absolutely gorgeous! Colors are amazing!!”  

Another declared, “Just came back from my local Vera Bradley store. I really like the re-brand. Nice job updating the patterns and the silhouettes!”  

Initial opinions about “Project Restoration” were mixed, but only time will tell the long-term effect of the company’s efforts.