Strategic Integration of TNT Express into FedEx

Following FedEx's acquisition of TNT Express, the global logistics giant faced the complex task of rebranding across various international markets. The primary goal was to execute the transition in an orderly manner while preserving the equity of both brands. The challenge was FedEx held significant equity in markets like the United States, while TNT Express was more prominent in Northern Europe. FedEx aimed to merge the entities but was concerned about the costs and market share losses that might result from an abrupt brand shift.

While at Landor, the agency responsible for creating FedEx's original brand identity in 1994, I led one of the teams entrusted with this project. Our approach was a collaborative effort between Landor's global strategy, design, and implementation teams. Together we conducted extensive market research, engaged stakeholders from both FedEx and TNT Express, and modeled rollout scenarios before developing a proposed solution.

Further complicating the project was FedEx’s need to evaluate their existing brand architecture. While often cited as an example of a master branded group of service lines, over time the complexity of the organization had complicated their brand management. Some lines had taken on additional icons or adopted colors that were too close to other services. Recognizing the merger would allow them to clean-up their architecture and sort the TNT Express services into their existing architecture, FedEx asked us to do a comprehensive examination of the current architecture and advise on how to extend or modify it to accommodate the new brand.

The implementation strategy used a case-by-case approach, sensitive to the brand equity within each market. We developed a comprehensive framework to evaluate which brand should be dominant in each region and guide the switchover process accordingly. This nuanced strategy allowed for a transition that could be tailored to the specific needs and brand perceptions in different markets.

The implementation of the strategy resulted in a rolling changeover of TNT Express into FedEx, with timelines varying significantly across the globe. For Example, in Australia, the complete transition took more than five years to finalize and some European markets still retain the TNT Express brand, illustrating the careful, market-specific approach.