Last month, the whole world was surprised when Turkey changed its name to Türkiye. The Turkish President Mr. Erdogan announced that the name was changed as it presents the country’s history and values in a more appropriate way.
After the nation’s name change, Erdogan has also announced that the Turkish Airlines would be renamed too. In his statement the Turkish President stated that since Turkey is no longer a country, Turkish Airlines needs to be renamed as well. Turkish Airlines would be renamed to Türk Hava Yolları.
The move has generated huge problems for the Airlines officials. It is claimed that the name change would kill the brand value. A brand value that was generated in an extremely hard way.
Turkish Airlines is the world’s 3rd biggest Airlines company. The two countries ahead of it are both American, so it could be said that Turkish Airlines is the second best in the world countrywise. Even in Turkey, Turkish Airlines is the most valuable brand.
The company’s officials argued that the name change would kill the global identity that the Airlines had acquired. The brand value was established after collaboration with global superstars that included the likes of Koby Bryant. So much was the effect of its brand value that it got sponsorship to teams like Barcelona and Manchester.
This is all when the actual financial burden of renaming hasn’t even been considered. The hardcore Turkish name of the company would alienate it from all of its non-Turkish customers. The rebranding attempt is self destructive in nature that would kill the global identity of the firm.
The real motives behind the move is hidden from none. The middle eastern country is witnessing the gradual Islamisation of what was a fairly open, progressive and inclusive state. The Hagia Sophia incident where a Library was converted to a Mosque is a prominent example of that. The country’s name change and now of this Airlines is just another step to the long series of events to persuade the fundamentalist Orthodox populace.
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