Warren Enskat Group

I have written many posts about how much emerging markets are driving product innovation globally. Yes, the US with Google, Apple and Facebook are still on the forefront of new technologies, but we have seen a trend of “reverse engineering” for many years across industries.

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For example, the new Jaguar F-type that was presented at the Paris Motor Show this week, was met with excitement and might revive the firm’s brand as an innovative classy leader of high-end vehicles. Fun fact: The F-type was being developed when Ford bought the firm in the 1990s, but Ford shut that down.

Jaguar of course after a couple of rounds of musical chairs post-2008 was sold by Ford to Tata for some $2.3 billion. Ratan Tata, aside from being a fan, got the Rover and other aspirational brands for emerging markets, as well as building market share in developed markets. East to west and west to east, a win win.

Of course, Tata is not the only emerging market powerhouse taking advantage of the financial crisis to build market share abroad and in formerly known developed markets. We have seen many financial investments and acquisitions in the asset management industry. But let’s stick to cars. China’s Geely group in 2010 acquired Volvo from, you guessed it, Ford. In 2011, Volvo recorded global sales of some 450,000 cars, an increase of 20% year on year. Go figure.

In a way, things are coming full circle. As I wrote in a blog in 2010 after the Geely acquisition, Porsche decided to play the game differently. I am not talking about the fascinating story about Porsche, as the BBC called it, as a “hedge fund with a carmaker attached“, that’s for another day,

Porsche, which went from consultant to carmakers to the most profitable automaker in the world, was in the middle of an extreme brand makeover – not an easy call for a company that only a few years ago received the title of most prestigious automobile brand in the world and year after year occupies a leading position in the 100 top brands globally.

Two metatrends convinced Porsche to undergo this painful and risky transition: wealth is now primarily driven by emerging markets (led by china), and sustainability is becoming a global force.

Emerging wealth is changing the world: There are now more rich people in Asia than in the U.S. and more millionaires in Brazil than in Australia – for details, see my recent post on “Asia, Private Banking, and Brand“.

Sustainability beyond trash: Germans have long paid attention to recycling, but it was limited to penniless perennial students: now, across Europe and the world (even the U.S.), the wealthy ask about sustainability beyond trash. As discussed in a recent blog on sustainability, everything from food to investments and clothing is being looked at through an ethical screen. It is no surprise that an emerging superpower such as China in just a few years has become the world leader in renewable energy.

Combining the power of both trends, Porsche decided to act – quickly.

In 2009 it unveiled the Panamera. The Panamera was presented at the Shanghai motor show and was the first of its models completely redesigned with more space in the backseat area for its Chinese customers, who prefer to be driven by a chauffeur.

And in 2010 in Geneva it continued its makeover with the 918 Spyder, a plug-in-hybrid that is faster than the Porsche Carrera GT due to its combined 718 horsepower total power output. Porsche is not alone in embracing this sustainability trend (partially due to upcoming regulatory changes): Ferrari in Geneva presented its HY-KERS experimental vehicle, Volkswagen voiced its ambition to be the leading electric carmaker in the world by 2018 and Daimler announced a partnership with Chinese automaker BYD.

We are, as recently speculated by me based on our global data, at a great historical turning point, and many of the leading companies understand the urgency of change.

Kodak had to reinvent itself twice in the last few years, first when film died and digital took over (no more Kodak moments) and then when growth for the firm shifted to Asia (with heavy investments in emerging markets).

In an era where one company can collect $100 billion in net new cash in one year from investors to one product alone, brand matters.

Reinventing brand in the age of metatrends… a case study. .