Deloitte Consulting joins the name-change gang

NEWS Following hot on the heels of PwC's rebrand of its consultancy division comes Deloitte Consulting's new name: Braxton. According to the company, Braxton is "a real name taken straight from [our] own heritage - taking the firm in a distinctively different direction than many other recent corporate name changes". No idea who it may be referring to there, but Deloitte has indeed owned this trademark since 1984, when it acquired the international management consulting firm, Braxton Associates. Deloitte Consulting CEO Doug McCracken said in a statement: "We are proud to adopt Braxton as our new name. It's real, it's easily memorable, and it has the stature expected of one of the world's largest consulting firms. It is a timeless name that will work for us now and in the future... Our choice of Braxton further demonstrates our willingness to break the mould." Apparently, Braxton was the most popular suggestion from the firm's own staff when they were asked to provide input earlier this year. Deloitte Consulting's branding advisors, Interbrand, also made Braxton its final recommendation after examining thousands of possibilities. Deloitte Consulting chief marketing officer Brian Fugere said: "Let's face it - the world is tired of coined, invented and whimsical corporate names." It also has one other handy attribute, as Fugere pointed out. "Finally, because we own the trademark, we won't have to pay through the nose for the rights to use it." And presumbaly it won't have the same URL 'issues' as PwC, although braxton.com is currently the online home of a company which makes "deep drawn parts that are far superior to machine parts", while braxton.de is devoted to soul singer Toni Braxton (and includes a nice picture of her in a top hat).