Editor’s note: This article was first published in April 2011, in the present tense. Emilio Botín of Banco Santander and Isidoro Álvarez of El Corte Inglés both died in 2014. The roles of Jean-Marc Vignolles at Orange Spain and Ignacio Sánchez Galán at Iberdrola, and the claim that Amancio Ortega is Spain’s richest man, are as of 2011.
When your company handles hundreds of millions or even billions a year, little is left to chance, and that includes marketing taken to its highest level. Behind the color of a tie lies a carefully studied subliminal message meant to convey a corporate image.
Red tie
Red conveys strength, passion and confidence, with a touch of aggressiveness in business. Red is part of Banco Santander’s corporate image, which is why Emilio Botín always wears a red tie (even when it doesn’t go with some of his suits).
Orange tie
Orange is the new red, so it stands for innovation: a younger, less old-fashioned color. Although it’s very hard to match with a suit, Jean Marc Vignolles, CEO of Orange Spain, always wears one. Maybe that’s why I’ve always associated orange with having no signal :).
Blue tie
Blue conveys calm and trust. It’s the color BBVA chose for its corporate image, since a bank needs to try to inspire trust. And, it has to be said, blue is red’s (Santander’s) biggest rival.
Black tie
Black signals hidden power and discretion about that power; since it’s a very common tie color, it tells us the wearer doesn’t need to draw attention. It also conveys elegance and seriousness. It’s the tie chosen by Isidoro Alvarez, chairman of El Corte Inglés, whose tie color now happens to match the situation El Corte Inglés is going through, as things are starting to look rather dark for the company.
Green tie
Ecology is usually represented by green, which is why Ignacio Sánchez, chairman of Iberdrola, has chosen this color. It’s a way of saying that his company works to protect the environment.
No tie
This is Amancio Ortega’s (Inditex) corporate image, showing that he feels no need to prove he’s somebody. At the same time, it suggests simplicity and humility. Why wear a tie when we all know he’s the richest man in Spain?
That said, if you’re not Emilio Botín or Ignacio Sánchez, be careful with the tie color you choose as your corporate image, because a badly matched outfit doesn’t send a corporate image message, only a lack of taste in combining colors 🙂
Featured image: Tomwsulcer, CC0 1.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
