TOTAL: More energy than TotalFinaElf

New: Total , both as corporate brand (replacing TotalFinalElf) and as a new retail livery.

Launched: May 6, 2003

Story in brief:
In 1999, France's Total acquired Belgian Petrofina to form TotalFina, then in 2000 acquired Elf Aquitaine and for a while became TotalFinaElf, a name created "to bring together the teams." But such a name can do just the opposite -- it can perpetuate warring cultures. Exercising leadership, and common sense, Desmarest took the logical next step, saying "The success of the merger enables us to change (...) to a simple and clear name that reflects the new Group that Total is today." (At retail, brand consolidation makes good marketing sense too.)

Credits:
CEO - Thierry Desmarest
Logo design - Laurent Vincenti, A and Co. (Paris)

First Impressions:
Another globe (like BT, especially like Pepsico) yet this one's fresh' bright and active. Well drawn. Vincenti says it "drew itself when I couldn't sleep. This image of a virtual globe made up of interlaced streams of energy just popped up out of nowhere."