# Spark New Zealand new logo (2014)

> Spark New Zealand launched a new logo on 8 Aug 2014. Telecom New Zealand renamed itself Spark New Zealand. The burst-shaped symbol introduced in 2009, which staff already called the spark, stayed and gave the company its name, now paired with a Spark wordmark in green.

## Key facts

- Brand: Spark New Zealand
- Launched: 8 Aug 2014
- What changed: Telecom New Zealand renamed itself Spark New Zealand. The burst-shaped symbol introduced in 2009, which staff already called the spark, stayed and gave the company its name, now paired with a Spark wordmark in green.
- Industry: Telecom
- Logos: https://rebrandlog.com/logos/spark-2014/before.png (before), https://rebrandlog.com/logos/spark-2014/after.png (after)

## The rebrand, explained

Telecom announced in February 2014 that it would change its name to Spark, and its ASX announcement of 1 July set the date: Friday 8 August 2014. The listed company became Spark New Zealand, the ticker moved from TEL to SPK, and the business unit Gen-i became Spark Digital.

The symbol did not change. Telecom had introduced the burst in October 2009, and Jason Paris, Spark's general manager for home, mobile and business, told Scoop that staff were already calling it the spark. The February release said the new name would carry with it the widely recognised logo. What changed is the wordmark: the lowercase telecom with its small nz gave way to Spark, set in green with the symbol.

Chief executive Simon Moutter said in the ASX announcement that "Spark is much more than just a new name". Not everyone was convinced. RNZ reported a budget of about 20 million dollars for the change, and quoted marketing academics who were divided over dropping one of the best known brands in the country. The 2014 annual report was the first published under the Spark name.

In short: The symbol stayed. The name finally caught up with it.

## Sources

- https://announcements.asx.com.au/asxpdf/20140701/pdf/42qk0x10gpnt6d.pdf
- https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU1402/S00581/telecom-changing-its-name-to-spark.htm
- https://investors.sparknz.co.nz/FormBuilder/_Resource/_module/gXbeer80tkeL4nEaF-kwFA/file/SPARK001-Spark-2014-AR-web.pdf
- https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/all/236857/telecom's-$20m-re-brand-sparks-row
- https://www.nbr.co.nz/telecom-rebrands-as-spark-the-nuts-and-bolts-the-ad-mens-verdict/
- https://scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1408/S00049/igniting-the-spark-why-telecom-wanted-to-change.htm

## Cite this

Rebrand Log, "Spark New Zealand new logo (2014)", https://rebrandlog.com/rebrand/spark-2014/, last updated 2026-10-22.