Yahoo Autos VCARB ready to tackle challenge of establishing team’s new identity
Visa Cash App RB — the former AlphaTauri team — understands the risks of its rebranding and is establishing a new identity that will be strong, according to CEO Peter Bayer.
RB signifies “Racing Bulls” as part of the new company name, while two title sponsors have been secured that form the team name and feature prominently on the livery of the VCARB 01. As the car was launched amid a party in Las Vegas on Thursday night, Bayer says both he and new team principal Laurent Mekies have been overseeing such major changes that he feels it goes hand-in-hand with a new identity.
“That’s obviously a risk [to lose the team’s identity], but we’re not only changing the name and putting a couple of logos on our jackets,” Bayer told RACER.
“Laurent and myself have been shaking the tree, literally, and there have been a lot of people joining the team, a lot of investment going on with the new performance center in the UK, we have a new lineup of drivers that is a little bit different to the past — one very experienced driver with an up-and-coming but established driver now — so there are a lot of things happening which are adding on to that identity that we’re trying to establish.
“Ultimately the bull and the RB is the solid bit which will always remain, but obviously I’m hoping that we will be a long time with Visa and Cash App, and that they will also contribute to that identity. I’ve seen at many events, there’s always pros and cons of naming rights partners, that people might be afraid that you’re off selling part of your identity, but I honestly don’t think that’s the case here.
“There’s only 10 Formula 1 teams in the world, and people definitely know that we are one of them. With all the things we do to establish a strong identity I am sure that we will soon be perceived as VCARB, [and] on the grid as one of the competitors that wants to fight for the top of the midfield and has a great lineup.
“But we’re also combining everything we do with a bit of fun and entertainment and music. We want to push the boundaries in Formula 1, and that’s what people will really remember.”
Despite the RB part of the title, Bayer explains why Racing Bulls was selected without being overly present in the team name, and is happy for fans to use the VCARB acronym.
“We said last year — and that was one of the objectives set by the shareholders — we should move closer again to the Red Bull family. So we wanted to have the bull back on the car, back on the team kit, and RB really is an homage to Red Bull.
“Yes, we have the company name ‘Racing Bulls’ which also has a bit of a history — which maybe was confusing people, but it’s coming back to the Red Bull group has different activities. One of them is the airplanes, the collection that Mr. [Dietrich] Mateschitz had, and they call them the Flying Bulls.
“So we needed to find a company name that works without any sponsors, because this time around we had to change everything — from one call to the next, to the fiscal offices, to every single supplier — and we had to change company names and registration numbers; it was a huge effort. To avoid that in the future if our sponsors might change, we wanted to have something neutral which is the Racing Bulls S.p.a. That’s the name of the business in Italy.
“The team identity is Visa Cash App RB Formula 1 Team. As one of the guys from Visa said, it is a mouthful, but the truth is Visa is one of the biggest brands in the world, Cash App is the most downloaded financial app in the U.S., they’re on a big growth curve, and they’re two amazing partners.
“Ultimately, yes we have that relationship with Red Bull which is very important to us. But the truth is also that internally we call ourselves VCARB so I would be happy if our fans would go along with us and support Visa Cash App RB F1 Team as VCARB.”
