As Ukraine accelerates toward globalization, local firms see the need to not only adapt their business practices, but also their image, in order to compete.
Kyiv law firm Shevchenko Didkovskiy & Partners became Asters in late February, while another local heavyweight Magister & Partners is just Magisters, spelled only with Latin letters.
“For foreigners, who are our main clients, it’s very difficult to pronounce ‘Shevchenko Didkovskiy’,” said Oleksiy Didkovskiy, who founded the corporate law firm in 1995 with partner Igor Shevchenko, who left in December.
The quintessential Ukrainian name, Shevchenko, played a positive role in the firm’s development but is done serving its purpose, Didkovskiy said, adding that eliminating his surname from the firm’s name wasn’t necessarily easy either.
Asters is more simple and palatable however, he said, reflecting the firm’s maturity, growth, and international status.
The rebranding, a pioneering decision both for the firm and Ukraine’s legal services market, was officially announced on Feb. 21 at a gala party held at the Hyatt Regency Kyiv.
“The new name of the firm is clearly in line with today’s international trends and precisely discloses its destiny – per aspera ad astra (through thorns to the stars),” the firm’s press release said.
Another homegrown firm, Magister & Partners, announced the start of its own rebranding by trimming its name and redesigning its signature spiral logo. The name will officially change by the end of March.
“What we’ve seen over the last few years in the West, and now in Europe and Eastern Europe, is that a lot of major companies are moving towards the simplification of their brand name and identity to allow for easier identification in the marketplace,” said Jason Bruzdzinski, the firm’s chief operating officer.
“Kraft Foods is simply known as Kraft now, and Kentucky Fried Chicken is KFC. It’s abbreviated.”
Asters decided on its new name for other practical reasons.
“A in all alphabets is a nice letter – it starts, it’s the beginning, it’s at the top,” said Armen Khachaturyan, an Asters senior partner.
Asters is also versatile, written in English, Ukrainian and Russian in fundamentally the same way, he said.
Meanwhile, Magister & Partners was aiming for consistency.
“Some people refer to us as Magisters and Partners, as Magister and Partners, as Magister, or Magisters,” Bruzdzinski said. “There’s a lot of inconsistency and we’re trying to fix that.”
Magisters has to be in English “because that best characterizes how we do business now,” Bruzdzinski said. “We are no longer a local law firm, we are a fullservice international law firm now.”
Besides, “it’s ruthlessly inefficient to try to do business in three different languages,” he added.
The rebranding trend isn’t limited to Ukraine’s legal services market.
All Ukrainian companies looking to expand globally, or conduct an initial public offering (IPO) are involved in the trend, experts said.
Industrial magnate Victor Pinchuk moved all his prime assets from his Interpipe holding company to EastOne, a Londonregistered investment firm he established in September 2007, with plans to go public in a major Western securities market.
Ukrainian firms want to be positioned as a global player rather than a local Ukrainian company, said Andriy Hunder, director of corporate communications and public affairs at PLEON Talan, an international communications consultancy.
“If you want to position yourself as a global leader, then by all means a company should consider rebranding to something more acceptable to the target audience,” he said. “If it’s predominately nonUkrainians or international audiences, then there is a case of changing the name to something that’s more pleasing to the ear.”
This especially applies to companies going for IPOs, he said.
“Obviously an investor would at least like to invest money in a company he can pronounce,” Hunder said.
In some cases, branding is applied with the opposite in mind – luring Ukrainian customers to the luxurious Western lifestyle associated with AngloSaxon names.
Greenfield and Greenwich Hill, written in Cyrillic, are two upscale suburban housing projects under construction by UkrZernoPromInvest, a Kyiv development company.
Meanwhile, the Latinspelled Montana Village subdivision is also planned for Kyiv’s suburbs, as well as OlympicPark and Kiev Golf & Country Club.
Such projects are marketed towards affluent Ukrainian consumers to indicate high status and European quality, said Inna Volosiuk, editor of Commercial Property magazine.
“It’s all about creating a perception of living somewhere that is perceived to be more Western,” Hunder said.
Perception is certainly the case with the planned Bosco Village subdivision, with many of its future Ukrainian residents unaware that Bosco is an American chocolate syrup brand.
Marketing approaches using Latin letters isn’t new, and among the most successful Ukrainian pioneers was vodka producer Nemiroff, Hunder said.
Although competitor Khortytsia is a strong brand, it will have problems going international because it’s name is in Cyrillic, he said.
“If you’re planning to go global, have a name that can be read,” he said. “And which would be positively understood by your target audience.”
A successful branding in a foreign language must also ensure the name works in a foreign language and its culture, Hunder said.
For example, Ukrainian Brokbyznesbank has an easy name to pronounce in English, but it could never crossover to international markets and survive, Hunder said.
“In English, it sounds absolutely awful,” he said. “It sounds like it’s a broke business. I wouldn’t put my money in that bank.”
