Does Idaho’s business brand matter?

March 10, 2008

The news today is that Old Navy is becoming Gap, K-Mart is Sears, and Motorola will likely become LG. This isn’t really news as any savvy business watcher knows of these relationships but the re-branding or newly branding of stores and products is a major marketing strategy consideration and one not to be taken lightly. It is always a good study when it happens. A state can be branded too. Not that many years ago Idaho was adorned with branded companies ranging from the very well known such at HP, and Boise Cascade, Ore-Ida, and Albertsons, to the successful but less universally known Jabil, Zilog, Extended Systems, and others. Managing a company’s “brand” as carefully as any other part of the business is a lesson leadership gurus teach constantly. Your brand can become your stock value.

Today we are a state that is un-adorned with Ore-Ida. We watched as Morrison-Knudsen and Albertsons were mismanaged into the ground. Micron rattled its sabers as if it were leaving. I think it is time to ask if this is important to us, and do we care?

by Mike Tomlin

Full Story: http://www.idahobusiness.net/archive.htm/2008/03/07/Does-Idahos-business-brand-matter