It was the most mocked rebrand in years. In 2021, when most companies were worrying about the pandemic, the Aberdeen investment company decided vowels were so yesterday, and renamed itself Abrdn. It claimed the change reflected a ‘modern, agile, digitally-enabled brand’. The move was almost universally mocked, with the group accused of suffering from irritable vowel syndrome. It didn’t help that the new Abrdn had to explain that the name was still pronounced … Aberdeen.

Last year, in a cringeworthy cry of pain, Abrdn’s chief investment officer Peter Branner complained that the mockery amounted to corporate bullying, saying such abuse wouldn’t be allowed if Abrdn was an individual. He told Financial News:

‘I understand that corporate bullying to some extent is part of the game with the press, even though it’s a little childish to keep hammering the missing vowels in our name.’

Branner’s pitiful outcry was equally mocked. City AM had fun with a headline reading ‘Abrdn: an apology – sry we kp tkng th pss ot of yr mssng vwls”.

This week, Abrdn threw in the towel, and conceded that vowels weren’t so bad after all. It will now be branded aberdeen group. Yes, without a capital A. Think of it as a matter of pride – a go-ahead brand can’t be expected to go all conventional overnight.

‘We will deliver by looking forward with confidence and removing distractions. To that end, we are changing our name to aberdeen group plc. This is a pragmatic decision marking a new phase for the organisation, as we focus on delivering for our customers, people and shareholders.’

This kind of corporate gobbledegook is sadly common. It means nothing. Is Windsor really admitted that Abrdn – sorry, aberdeen group – hasn’t been focusing on its customers, people and shareholder during its four year campaign against innocent vowels? And talk of removing ‘distractions’ ignores the fact that it was Aberdeen that caused the distraction in the first place.