Is Brand Consistency More Important than Rebranding?

PM's executive editor Kyle Richardson sent me an article about high-end design house Yves Saint Laurent's rebranding a few months ago. By the time I sat down to blog about it (less than a week later), the issue was resolved and many believed YSL was maintaining its original brand, with a few tweaks to its ready-to-wear line. Then came a slew of confusing PR moves by YSL, resulting in an email that Imran Amed quoted in a Business of Fashion article. It breaks down like this: Yves Saint Lauren is the design house. The ready-to-wear collection is Saint Laurent. The logo for the ready-to-wear line says Saint Laurent Paris. Any photographs of the line must say Saint Laurent by Hedi Slimane.