Brand knowledge, organizational roles and buy-in during B2B rebranding

Purpose This study aims to explore the rebranding of acquired brands, aiming to identify how brand knowledge dimensions shape buy-in across organizational levels and how companies can effectively transfer brand equity from the original brand to the new brand. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a case study of a multinational business-to-business (B2B) life sciences company undergoing a global rebranding process, drawing on interviews, documents and validation workshops. Findings The findings show that B2B rebranding unfolds as a multi-level process involving stakeholders at both strategic and operational levels. Brand equity transfer depends on an initial awareness condition: stakeholders must first recognize that the brand has changed before they can evaluate the new brand’s image and continuity. However, in practice, awareness and image transfer may overlap as stakeholder responses shape the rebranding process. While awareness is relatively straightforward to establish, buy-in depends on brand image. The associations driving buy-in differ across levels: strategic-level stakeholders focus primarily on functional considerations, whereas operational-level stakeholders are more influenced by symbolic considerations. Feedback from subsidiaries and employees can also inform subsequent strategic adjustments during the rebranding process. Practical implications During B2B rebranding, managers must inform stakeholders about the change and then actively demonstrate how the new brand preserves the key benefits associated with the old brand. This involves demonstrating to strategic-level stakeholders how the new brand improves capabilities, market position and customer value, while reassuring operational-level stakeholders that the new brand represents the same professional pride, reputation and way of working that they previously identified with. Originality/value This study highlights the importance of distinguishing between strategic and operational roles during rebranding, shows how brand awareness and brand image play distinct roles in brand equity transfer and conceptualizes B2B rebranding as an iterative brand knowledge transfer process.