Financial firm Abrdn changes its name to ‘aberdeen group’ after relentless mocking over woke rebrand
CITY firm Abrdn has had a vowel movement and changed its name to “aberdeen group” after relentless mocking.
New boss Jason Windsor called the move a “pragmatic decision” to “remove distractions”.
Jason Windsor, new CEO of Aberdeen Investment
It comes two months after he said “the name is the name and we will be continuing with it”.
The Edinburgh-based fund management firm was ridiculed in 2021 when it underwent a woke rebrand and dropped most of the vowels from its name.
It was the idea of a marketing agency following Aberdeen Asset Management’s merger with Standard Life — and was described as a “bold move to stand out”.
Stephen Bird, then-boss of Abrdn, tried to say it showed “clarity of focus”.
But it was widely branded the worst name change in history and led to people communicating with the firm in messages with no vowels.
Even dance act The Shamen, best known for their 1992 hit Ebeneezer Goode, got involved, cheekily saying “dropping three Es” was a commendable notion.
Chief investment officer Peter Branner made matters worse last year by saying the teasing was like “corporate bullying”.
The new aberdeen group name is not entirely woke-free — it has no capital letters.
ReutersAbrdn has changed its name to ‘aberdeen group’ after relentless mocking[/caption]
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