RM: Remo Masala isn’t your typical designer. He works at the intersection of storytelling, strategy and visual transformation, and with the Condor rebrand, he didn’t just refresh an airline. He reimagined a legacy.
With a career spanning Audi, the Kuoni Group and now creative leadership at Vision Alphabet, Remo has built a name for designing brand worlds that don’t just sell. They stay.
In a world full of branding buzzwords, his work on Condor stands out because it’s bold, instinctive and deeply human. I had the pleasure of speaking with him for our Knowledge Series at City & Talent.
Quick facts: the Condor rebrand
- Airline: Condor, Germany’s well-known holiday airline, with a history of more than 60 years
- The big idea: colourful “summer stripes” inspired by beach towels, deck chairs and parasols
- New brand claim: “Passion is our Compass”
- Why then: around 80% of the fleet was due for repainting, creating a natural moment for change
“Condor is vacation and vacation is striped”
Q: Remo, Condor is vacation and vacation is striped. Actually a simple equation – was that the basis of the idea for the striped look?
RM: Revising the brand image of Condor with its long tradition was a sensitive interaction right from the start, based on respect for the origin and the requirements for the future. Our basic consideration was: How can the Condor be given the greatest possible visual differentiation and independence? The result was the summer stripes, which at the same time represent a reference to vacation.
My take:
This deceptively simple idea led to one of the most recognisable airline rebrands of recent years. Condor’s aircraft are now wrapped in bold, beach-style stripes in colours that say “holiday” before you’ve even boarded.
Think of beach towels, deck chairs and parasols: the colours and patterns that define summer. By putting that aesthetic on the aircraft, Remo did something radical. He made the plane itself part of the holiday. The livery stands out on any runway, Instagram feed or travel blog. It creates instant recall, emotional warmth and, most importantly, brand distinction.
When was the last time you saved an aircraft livery to a “Summer” Pinterest board? Remo captured that feeling perfectly.
Why Rebrand a Strong Brand?
Q: It was, therefore, necessary to develop traditions further. Condor is a strong brand; why is rebranding the right thing to do right now?
RM: Condor has demonstrated impressive brand discipline over the years since its creation: Otl Aicher, probably the most famous German graphic designer and brand maker of the 1960s, developed the figurative mark and the lettering – since then Condor has been yellow and had the condor in a circle as its signet. This tradition was then broken by belonging to corporations at the end of the 90s. Sometimes Thomas Cook stood on the planes, then Condor powered by Thomas Cook and in the following years a colourful mix of appearances emerged. With 80 percent of the aircraft currently due for a new paint job – after all, they have to be painted about every seven years – the time was now more ripe than ever to decide on the future of the brand.
My take:
Looking closely at Condor’s branding over the previous 20 years, its identity had clearly become diluted. Corporate ownership changes brought confusing variations, from Thomas Cook branding to hybrid lines like “Condor powered by Thomas Cook,” and a visual language that no longer felt cohesive.
This is a lesson for any business owner: a brand refresh isn’t just an aesthetic upgrade. It’s a business milestone. When your infrastructure, products or market position reach a turning point, your brand needs to evolve too.
It’s what Burberry did when it blended heritage with urban edge, and what Dropbox did when it repositioned from a file storage tool to a creative workspace, changing not just its look but its voice.
From “We Love Flying” to “Passion Is Our Compass”
Q: Condor is known for their passion: We love what we do! That’s why our claim for years was “We love flying!”. We now have “Passion is our Compass”. Why is this better suited for Condor?
RM: A new brand identity is also a further development and the beginning of a new chapter. It is true that Condor stands for passion everywhere and precisely this passion is their inner compass. The new claim goes deeper and expresses even better who Condor is and how much tradition and quality it has. Because Condor is and remains Condor – Germany’s most popular holiday airline.
My take:
For years, Condor’s brand line was warm and playful: “We love flying.”
The new claim, “Passion is our Compass,” expresses more than enthusiasm. It speaks to tradition, quality and confidence, all guided by passion.
It’s an emotional step up, similar to when Airbnb introduced “Belong Anywhere,” signalling a shift from accommodation to community. A brand claim isn’t just a catchphrase. It’s a distillation of the company’s soul: how it wants to be perceived and remembered.
More Than Stripes: Culture, Cabin and Service
Q: A striped livery on an aeroplane was a bold move; what compelled you to rebrand a brand like “Condor” with a history spanning more than 60 years?
RM: As a creative agency, we are happy about every client who wants simple and perfect solutions for complex issues. It wasn’t just about stripes, it was about the repositioning of a brand and the understanding of the employees for this transformation. Stripes are one thing you see. Our interior design of the cabin is another important change. But the service of the staff and the culture of the company, these are the real changes that the customer feels and that make the whole thing perfect.
My take:
The stripes are what we see, but they’re only the surface of a much deeper transformation. The whole flying experience, from cabin design to staff culture, was reconsidered. That matters, because a rebrand without cultural adoption is merely cosmetic. When you design for a brand, you don’t just design for products. You design for people.
Think about IKEA. Its visual identity is simple, but the customer experience, from store layout to flat-pack assembly to meatballs, is the brand. Condor’s transformation follows the same logic. Every stripe tells a story, but every interaction confirms it.
Future-Proof Rebranding
Q: What’s your take on future-proof rebranding, and how can one achieve it?
RM: There is no security in change. The best and most expensive market surveys would never have produced the change Condor has made. Many marketing staff trust too much in the opinion of surveys. This safeguards them and the expected change is mostly mediocre.
For me, market surveys are an additional element but not the driver of innovation. Innovation arises on other levels and the art of rebranding is to sense the change that is taking place.
My take:
Remo’s point is clear: don’t wait for data to give you permission to be visionary. Research can inform decisions, but true innovation often comes from intuition, cultural awareness and the ability to read where the world is heading.
Patagonia made environmental responsibility central to its brand long before it became mainstream. Tesla didn’t wait for surveys to prove electric cars could be desirable. It decided they would be, and made it happen.
As Remo puts it, “the art of rebranding is to sense the change that is taking place.”
5 Branding Lessons From the Condor Rebrand
Boldness pays off when backed by vision. Research informs, but conviction creates distinctive brands.
A clear visual idea builds recall and emotion. Stripes equal holidays, and everyone gets it instantly.
Timing can unlock bold decisions. With most of the fleet due for repainting, the business case for change was already there.
Culture must match the visuals. Staff, service and cabin experience have to deliver what the brand promises.
Restore discipline to a diluted brand. Years of mixed identities had weakened Condor. The rebrand brought back a single, confident voice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Condor rebrand?
Condor’s identity had become diluted after years of changing corporate ownership and mixed branding. With around 80% of its aircraft due for repainting, the airline used the moment to create a bold, independent brand that reflects its focus on holidays.
What do Condor’s stripes mean?
The stripes are inspired by summer and holidays, evoking beach towels, deck chairs and parasols. They give Condor strong visual differentiation and make the aircraft part of the holiday experience.
What is Condor’s slogan?
Condor’s brand claim is “Passion is our Compass.” It replaced the earlier line “We love flying” and expresses the airline’s passion, tradition and quality.
What can businesses learn from the Condor rebrand?
The Condor rebrand shows that a simple, emotional idea can transform recognition, that timing matters, that internal culture must match external branding and that bold decisions backed by vision often outperform safe, survey-led choices.
Final Thoughts
My conversation with Remo Masala wasn’t only about aircraft design. It was a reminder that branding is the emotional infrastructure of every great business. Branding isn’t just design. It’s a strategic lever for growth, differentiation and trust.
It was a privilege to hear how Remo shaped the Condor rebrand, leaving a lasting mark on holidaymakers and travellers. As we continue The Knowledge Series at City & Talent, we hope this story inspires founders, marketers and creators to look beyond the surface and understand the full power of brand transformation.
Because in a world of sameness, a bold stripe can be the most honest thing a brand can wear.
Build a Brand That Stands Out With City & Talent
City & Talent helps businesses build bold, distinctive brands, from strategy and identity to digital experience, with teams in Mumbai, Delhi and Dubai. If you’re looking for the best digital marketing company in Mumbai to shape a brand people remember, get in touch with our team.