Government of Holland has announced plans to change name of the country and prevent using that name any more.
The new decision of the Netherlands government stirs controversy among citizens according to Adformatie, a local magazine in Holland.
It made clear that the authorities decide to modernize the country.
The current name of Holland relates in minds of tourists to drugs and street walkers in Amsterdam, the capital city of Holland.
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The new name adopts an older one of the Netherlands.
The Dutch Government has decided to ditch all use of the term “Holland” to reference the name of their country. The Netherlands, the country’s official name, will now be used in all promotional materials.
The clear branding decision ends decades of confusion and has been agreed by a range of stakeholders including central government, tourism board and business leaders.
Those behind the change want to essentially rebrand the country on an international stage, where Holland is arguably the more common name. In particular, government ministers are keen to disassociate the county from the image of Amsterdam’s red light district and recreational drug use.
A spokeswoman for the ministry of foreign affairs said the Netherlands needed a more uniform and coordinated national branding. She said: “We want to present the Netherlands as an open, inventive and inclusive country. We’ve modernized our approach."
Although the Netherlands’ flag is red, white and blue, the color orange is prominently used in the country’s branding. Dutch News reported that orange will remain the country’s official color, although it’s not known whether the tulip icon will be retained or not.
Among the first uses of the revised brand in major promotional campaigns will be at the 2020 Eurovision Song Contest, which will be hosted by the Dutch city Rotterdam. The Netherlands will also be used on all materials associated with the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
To many sports fans around the world, the name Holland is a powerful brand. The bright orange kit and attractive soccer played by the Dutch during the 70's, 80's and 90's created a valuable legacy on the international stage, albeit one that has been in steady decline for some years now.
The tourism board face a potentially long and expensive rebranding exercise, not least because their main website uses the domain Holland.com. The tourism board also publish extensive brand guidelines known as the Holland Toolkit.
It could provide the organization with a needed opportunity to shift their focus, however. Tourism numbers to the capital Amsterdam have reached levels that many are calling unsustainable.
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