Initially, we took a broad look to see what makes the Jaguar brand what it is today. The result, a set of ‘mood’ boards which were then distilled into six evocative images and key words which formed the basis and benchmark for all the work that followed.

From the outset British Racing Green (BRG) was the colour for Jaguar. The only question was how? BRG is not a colour reference – more a sign of heritage – and it would view black when televised. Our recommendation combined an electric green with the classic dark green to express both modernity and heritage. The introduction of a vibrant splash of red, so visible on the Jaguars of yesteryear, was intended to indicate the hot-blooded

passion of the campaign and a tangible link to the new ‘R’ performance brand.

Our research also demonstrated the relevance of the Paul Smith brand to Jaguar: modern, British and idiosyncratic, an ideal tailor for the team. Later, Jaguar asked Paul Smith to apply his signature stripes to a new X-Type.

Our period of familiarisation with the Jaguar brand also allowed us to challenge preconceived ideas and look closely at the Jaguar marque. This appeared counter to our logical idea of forward motion. On the car it would be a faithful representation some of the time; on supporting vehicles the same would be true. In addition, we saw an opportunity to create a more dynamic ‘fast cat’: a Leaper to represent the ‘R’ branded performance cars as well as the racing programme. It would make a direct link between the road and racing cars and be an emotive symbol for Jaguar’s powerful and technically advanced products.