Beyond the Brand: Famous Companies That Used to Have Different Names

Have you ever wondered about the origin stories of your favorite brands? Many of the world’s most recognizable companies didn’t start with the names we know today. They evolved, pivoted, and rebranded to become the household names they are now. Let’s explore the fascinating histories behind these famous business transformations.

The Stories Behind Major Company Rebrands

A name change is a significant step for any business. It can be driven by a merger, a shift in focus, a desire to appeal to a global audience, or simply because the original name no longer fits. Here are some of the most well-known companies that started life under a completely different identity.

Google was once BackRub

It’s hard to imagine searching the internet with anything other than Google, but the tech giant started with a much more literal name. In 1996, founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin called their new search engine BackRub. The name was a reference to the system’s ability to analyze the web’s “back links” to determine a website’s importance.

By 1997, they decided a new name was needed to reflect their mission of organizing the world’s vast amount of information. They landed on “Googol,” the mathematical term for the number one followed by 100 zeros. A simple spelling mistake during the domain name registration resulted in “Google,” and the iconic name was born.

Nike started as Blue Ribbon Sports

The globally dominant sportswear brand with the famous “swoosh” logo began its journey in 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS). Founded by Phil Knight and his track coach Bill Bowerman, BRS was initially a U.S. distributor for the Japanese shoe brand Onitsuka Tiger.

As the company grew and began designing its own shoes, the founders knew they needed a stronger, more memorable name. In 1971, just before launching their first self-branded shoe, they officially changed the name to Nike, after the Greek goddess of victory. The choice proved to be a masterstroke, perfectly capturing the spirit of athletic achievement.

Pepsi was originally Brad’s Drink

One of the world’s most famous soft drinks was first invented in 1893 by a pharmacist named Caleb Bradham. He initially sold the beverage at his North Carolina drug store under the name Brad’s Drink. The goal was to create a fountain drink that was both delicious and would aid in digestion.

Five years later, in 1898, Bradham renamed his creation “Pepsi-Cola.” The name was derived from the words “dyspepsia,” which means indigestion, and the kola nut, one of the drink’s key ingredients. This rebrand aimed to market the drink as a healthy beverage that could relieve indigestion.

Instagram launched as Burbn

Before it became the world’s premier photo-sharing app, Instagram had a much broader and more complicated identity. It started in 2010 as Burbn, a location-based social networking app that included features for check-ins, planning future check-ins, and photo sharing.

Founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger noticed that while most of Burbn’s features were ignored, users loved sharing photos. They made a bold decision to strip away everything else and focus solely on a simple, mobile-first photo-sharing experience. They renamed the streamlined app Instagram, a blend of “instant camera” and “telegram,” and the rest is history.

Best Buy’s first name was Sound of Music

In 1966, Richard M. Schulze founded an electronics store in Minnesota specializing in high-fidelity stereos. He named his shop Sound of Music. The business was successful for years, but a disaster in 1981 forced a major strategic shift. After a tornado damaged the flagship store, the company held a massive “Tornado Sale” in the parking lot, advertising the “best buys” on damaged and excess stock.

The sale was a phenomenal success. This experience led Schulze to rethink his business model. In 1983, he rebranded the company to Best Buy, shifting from a small specialty store to a big-box superstore model focused on offering a wide selection at low prices.

Nissan was known as Datsun in the U.S.

The Japanese automaker we know as Nissan has a complex naming history, especially in the United States. The parent company in Japan has been Nissan since the 1930s, but when it began exporting cars to the U.S. in 1958, it did so under the brand name Datsun.

This decision was made partly to protect the Nissan corporate name in case the American venture failed. For decades, Americans knew the brand as Datsun. In 1981, the company decided to unify its global branding under the Nissan name. The transition took several years and a massive marketing campaign to re-educate consumers.

PayPal began as Confinity

The company that revolutionized online payments was formed in 1998 under the name Confinity, a combination of the words “confidence” and “infinity.” Confinity’s primary product was a service that allowed people to “beam” payments between Palm Pilot devices.

Around the same time, another company called X.com, founded by Elon Musk, was also working on an email-based payment system. The two companies were direct competitors but decided to merge in 2000. They initially kept the X.com name but soon realized that their most popular feature was the “PayPal” payment system. In 2001, the entire company was officially renamed PayPal.

LG started as Lucky-Goldstar

The South Korean multinational conglomerate LG has a name that is an initialism of its two founding companies. The journey began after the Korean War with the formation of Lak-Hui Chemical Industrial Corp. in 1947, which later became Lucky. This company produced plastics and other household goods.

In 1958, Lucky established a sister company called Goldstar to enter the electronics industry. For decades, the two operated under the umbrella of the Lucky-Goldstar group. To better compete on the global stage, the company officially shortened its name to “LG” in 1995, creating a more modern and internationally friendly brand identity.