The Rebranding of Lenovo After Its Acquisition of Thinkpad

The Rebranding of Lenovo after Its Acquisition of ThinkPad Chinese company Lenovo, founded in Beijing in 1984 and incorporated in Hong Kong in 1988, has gone through rebranding after its 2005 acquisition of the ThinkPad PC business from U. S. firm IBM. 1 Since then, Lenovo has risen to become the top PC maker alongside Hewlett-Packard, and analysts headland to its ThinkPad products as a major factor behind its success. Lenovos acquisition of IBMs personal computer division accelerated access to foreign markets while improving twain its branding and technology.Before 2005, Lenovo lacked international recognition, attention to user and user experience outside China. The acquisition of the ThinkPad not only helped Lenovo bear on brand image, but also helped it fortify the awareness in overseas markets. In order to extend the market and compete against its competitors Lenovo has pursued innovative new PC designs such as its universal IdeaPad Yoga products, ThinkPad Helix, and ThinkP ad Twist. Lenovo has achieved significant success with this high-value strategy and it now controls more than 40% of the market for Windows computers priced above $900 in the United States. 2 Keeping the original name ThinkPad, Lenovo puts its brand indistinguishability in front of it. The brand value of ThinkPad has been successfully kept after being acquired by Lenovo. Shipments of Think-branded computers have doubled since Lenovos takeover of the brand, with operating margins thought to be above 5%. 2 Lenovo has aggressively expanded the ThinkPad brand away from traditional laptop computers in favor of tablets and hybrid devices such as ThinkPad Helix and the ThinkPad Twist. Lenovo ThinkPadThinkPad contrast has filled up the blank of high-end products, completing the whole product lines of Lenovo. Now, Lenovo offers a multiplicity of product lines, and successfully seizing both high-end and low-end market. ThinkPad products are aimed at producing opening machines and high-end c onsumer products and positioned to compete with Apple in the high-end market. While, otherwise product lines, such as IdeaPad and Essential, are focusing on mid- and low-range products, competing with HP, Deal as well as other mid-and low range price PC producers.To improve its brand awareness in the international retail market, Lenovo has invested heavily in media and promotion. Lenovo hoped to establish a cosmopolitan brand image of cool and innovative, rather than a synonym for cheap. Lenovo has purchased the advertising space during Super Bowl and a popular TV show glee. One ad shows a Lenovo notebook open its parachute after being thrown out of an airplane, which displays the Quick Launch feature of the Lenovo notebook. In the hall of the Lenovo U. S. building, the tagline For those who do can be easily found everywhere.Lenovo was also cleverly advertised in a Hollywood movie Transformers Dark of the Moon. In the movie, a computer transforms into a robot friend of the hero, Shia Labeouf and the name of the computer company is there for all to see Lenovo. Chinese enterprises are looking for better opportunities to promote brands globally, and Hollywood is a good platform, said Liu Siru, head of the advertising company Filmworks China Entertainment Marketing, which is operating in the US movie hub3. References 1 Company invoice of Lenovo on their official website, http//www. enovo. com/lenovo/us/en/history. html 2 From guard shack to global large Chinese industry From guard shack to global giant Chinese industry. The Economist. January 12, 2013. Retrieved February 5, 2013. 3 Chen Jia Remake, Remodel and Rebrand Chinese firms need to raise their game to gain international recognition, October 2, 2011. 4 Craig Stephen ( noble 20, 2012), Chinas Lenovo may be one-off success,MarketWatch, August 20, 2012. 5 Face value Legend in the making. The Economist, February 6, 2013.