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Weight Watchers drops its mark in exchange for something thinner: "WW". The company says the new logo – associated with the slogan "Wellness that Works" – focuses on overall health and well-being, with less concerted attention on calorie counting and weight loss.
The "WW" logo has already been used, including in the current application of the company, but Monday marks the beginning of a revision of the company. But not everyone is convinced that "WW" is a winner, and that it can instead confuse potential customers stumbling over a two-letter twister.
"Everyone is talking about well-being and, to some extent, people do not want to use the word" diet "because they think it's a short-term punitive problem, and that's not the case. Is not what we are, "said Mindy Grossman. The President and CEO of WW. "It was very important to us that people understand that this is a 360-degree approach to health, no matter how you define it yourself. "
The name change comes during a run run for the 55-year-old company. In August, WW announced it had completed its second quarter with 4.5 million subscribers, an increase of 1 million over a year ago. Second quarter sales increased 20% year-over-year. In February, Grossman announced a target of $ 2 billion in revenue by 2020.
In recent years, the company has had a boost from billionaire media mogul Oprah Winfrey, who took a 10% stake in the company in 2015 and joined her board of directors. Her course has skyrocketed after the partnership, and Oprah has since made her debut in advertising campaigns evoking her own weight loss and unwavering love of bread.
In addition to the name change, WW announced a WellnessWins rewards program for "small daily behaviors," such as meal tracking, activity, and weight. The company is also partnering with Headspace, a meditation and mindfulness company, to develop content specific to WW members. Monday's announcement included news of a voice-integration program with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, as well as an updated FitPoints program that tracks and encourages physical activity. .
Linda Bolton Weiser, senior analyst at DA Davidson Management Services Company, said that the name change was not surprising given the company's earlier use of the acronym and its emphasis growing on well-being at the expense of weight. Weiser said that it expects strong growth, slightly lower than that of 2018, for the coming year, partly supported by "WellnessWins" and other new initiatives. Weiser is forecasting revenue growth of 12% in 2019, compared to a 19% growth forecast for 2018.
In an analyst report released this month, Weiser wrote that WW "will enter 2019 with a growing subscriber base and a new loyalty program that should drive growth for the 2019 season."
Beth Egan, an advertising professor at Syracuse University, said abandoning a strict diet is part of a broader cultural trend.
But "WW?"
"I can not imagine what they think," said Egan.
Egan said that generally, when companies consider changing their name to acronyms or undergo a major branding change, they work with brand agencies and focus groups to identify what change might mean for a target audience. . Egan said she doubted that this type of research helped support "WW".
WW, which moved away from the word "weight", was similar to Kentucky Fried Chicken, which was evolving to "KFC" in 1991 to avoid "shouting" fried "" while keeping that legacy, "Egan said. that the new Weight Watchers name is both difficult to pronounce and echoes other well-known acronyms – like WWE for World Wrestling Entertainment or WWF for the World Wildlife Fund – that do not stop only after the "WW."
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