The regendering of brand mascots

The Michelin Man, Gio Compario the GoCompare tenor, Kool-Aid Man, Captain Morgan and dozens of other popular brand mascots have one thing in common: they are male. Even if they are just a stack of tyres or a jug of cooldrink, many brand mascots have been given the marks of masculinity and use this masculinity (e.g. breaking down a wall and booming “OH YEEEAAHH” in a deep voice) to sell plenty of good, value-for-money products.

Advertising and commercial media at large show a tendency towards favouring male experiences and desires over those of women and the non-binary gendered community, and whenever some good ideas and creative people break through the glass ceiling these ideas and people should be applauded.

International Women’s Day on the 8th of March 2018 brought many events, speeches and observances which celebrated women for their contributions to the world, and just for being all-round great people.

Some brilliant people marked the day by regendering/rebranding several well-known logos and mascots. Creative Equals, a gender equality advocacy group for the creative industry, animated several GIFs where brand mascots switched between apparently male and female appearances.

The yellow-jacketed, giant pen-wielding Bic person pops two pony tails out the bottom of ‘his’ head. Rich Uncle Pennybags, alias ‘The Monopoly Man’, disappears for a second before reappearing without monocle and moustache in favour of long hair and lipstick.

The Dreamworks Boy, resting on a crescent moon with a fishing rod, instantly develops a ponytail. Julio Pringle sucks up his curved moustache which emerges out the back as her ponytail. Last but not least, the silhouetted Schwarzkopf head similarly exchanges short hair for a neat bun and fringe.

These novel-yet-empowering GIFs are not the first moves to rebrand traditionally male logos and mascots.

Ronette McDonald

For a Japanese marketing campaign, Ronald McDonald, the slightly scary McDonald’s clown, donned high-heeled clown shoes, a yellow dress and straight, red hair for a saucy ad spot in 2003.

The creator of the feminine version says they didn’t intend to make a female Ronald, but rather tried to transpose the iconic clown get-up for a more noticeably feminine character. Despite the intention, the notion of Ronette spread in Japan and people loved it.

The Red Baroness  

What do you need when your frozen foods brand’s target audience is busy mothers? An aristocratic, female fighter ace, of course!

Red Baron exchanged their male logo’s pilot goggles and bushy moustache for the Baroness’s aviators and flowing curls. The frozen pizza company unveiled their new mascot as an ordinary, working American mother who looks after her kids while juggling a husband, employment and a thousand other responsibilities. A short ad spot debuted the Baroness swapping war stories with another hard-working mother-in-arms, and culminates in the Baroness awarding ‘wings’ to her mother-in-arms: a badge from her bomber jacket that says “Nailed It!”

The Baron, in all his mustachioed glory, will remain on the logos and pizza boxes, but the Baroness, with her own amusing Twitter account, will be the main character for an ongoing campaign.

Colonel Reba Sanders

Colonel Harland David Sanders’ face appears on billboards, chicken nugget boxes, Family Feast buckets, serviettes and pretty much everything else to do with Kentucky Fried Chicken. The Colonel’s iconic style made him the perfect poster boy for his multinational fast food empire, and male actors have played his character throughout the years.

But this is 2018 and a woman now plays the Colonel. Country singer and American treasure Reba McEntire recently became the first woman to perform as the Colonel in an ad campaign for KFC in the US.

Instead of exchanging facial hair for long hair and a suit for a dress, like many other mascots mentioned here, Reba as the Colonel still has the classic white goatee, white suit and Kentucky string tie. The only alterations to the Colonel’s appearance: a glittery sheen to the suit, and a dazzling fringe that runs from elbow to elbow. This is more to emphasize the country roots of the Colonel, rather than the fact that the actor is a woman. “Finger Lickin’ Good” has never sounded so authentic than with a southern twang and a country tune.

Jane Walker

To celebrate Women’s History Month in March 2018, Johnnie Walker introduced Jane, a female counterpart to decorate a limited edition whisky. Jane appears on the box and bottle for a 12-year old scotch, released specifically to market a donation campaign affiliated with the brand.

The logo changed slightly, with Johnnie’s bow tie and flat-soled boots falling away in favour of a neck tie and heeled boots for Jane. Jane’s chin is also less pronounced and her hair blows behind her as she strides.

In an effort to promote women’s equality and honour feminists of American history, Johnnie Walker’s parent company has also announced that $1 from every bottle sold will be donated towards erecting a monument in New York to commemorate women voters’ rights advocates.

March 2018 was internationally celebrated as Women’s History Month and once again reminded us of the vital need for women’s and gender equality in all spheres of life. Social media agencies, creative agencies and advertising companies have an important (and fun) role in promoting equality and uplifting women.