Infiniti is launching a major rebranding effort
Brand looks to put more emphasis on its Japanese heritage
Infiniti has just announced that it is looking to reinvent itself to enhance the customer experience. That includes a new dealership design and a new logo. It does not include any new models, at least not yet.
One of the big changes is a new brand logo, the company’s fourth since it was started in 1989. On paper, or at least on screen, the change is tiny. The Infiniti caliper grows a tiny gap and the font changes. On the cars, though, it will be much different.
On the vehicles, Infiniti is making the logo three-dimensional. The caliper opening will fold back toward the vehicle, making it virtually disappear.
“While most illuminated logos are relatively flat, our designers wanted to reflect the journey, towards tomorrow. We created a truly vanishing road by bending the form and lighting inward to deepen the sense of the infinite, in our infinite road,” said design boss Alfonso Albaisa.
The new store design is meant to take inspiration from the Japanese concept of “Ma,” which Infiniti calls “a philosophy that considers the space between things.” It is also designed to create seamless transitions from outside to inside, blurring the boundaries. Other Japanese touches include lots of wood-look finishes, a “kimono fold” pattern on selected walls, and a translucent mesh screen in the showroom. You also won’t find many solid walls.
Doha, Qatar, Monterrey, Mexico, Downtown Los Angeles, and Georgetown, Texas will be the first to get the new Infiniti showroom, with more to come.
Then there’s the new Infiniti smell and sound. The scent is a mix of hinoki wood, sugi, and yuzu. Megumi Fukatsu, the master scent designer Infiniti hired, said the goal was to “transport people to a tranquil Japanese forest, deliver a touch of nature and bring a sense of calm.” Infiniti will use the smell at events and in showrooms.
The scent comes with a sound, which uses a taiko drum and a Japanese wood chime. We’re not going to pretend to understand the imagery, but Infiniti seems to be eager to show it off.
So the next time you look at an Infiniti showroom, things could be much different. Architecturally, at least. The lineup of vehicles continues as is for now.
