January 26, 2026
KUALA LUMPUR – “IT’S a Singaporean brand,” a Singaporean friend told me during dinner at a restaurant in Kuala Lumpur earlier this week. The expert on Malaysian politics was referring to Bacha Coffee.
I was surprised: “I thought it was Moroccan,” I said.
I discovered the brand in September 2023. There was a long line outside its first outlet in Suria KLCC. The buzz was that it was a Moroccan brand with a rich history dating back to 1910 in Marrakesh. Well, that’s what it said on its label. The crowd lining up to get in and sip was certainly atas (upscale) enough to fit in in the luxury outlet, which was described as heavily inspired by the brand’s 1910 roots in the Dar el Bacha palace in Marrakech.
On the car ride home from my recent dinner, however, Google told me that a company called V3 Gourmet started Bacha from scratch in Singapore in 2019. V3 also owns TWG Tea, which I had always assumed was an English brand with a deep British tradition. Turns out it was created in Singapore in 2008.
The company cultivated an aura of antiquity for relatively new brands by anchoring its logos with historic-looking dates – 1837 for TWG and 1910 for Bacha. Using modern marketing, it persuaded customers there are centuries of tradition behind the brands.
This “heritage” impression is solidified through maximalist, old-world store designs that use brass accents and floor-to-ceiling canisters to replicate the atmosphere of a pre-war European salon. That’s the power of successful branding.
As I got home, I realised that this “heritage illusion” isn’t unique to luxury caffeine. If a less than two-decade-old company can convince the world it has century-old Moroccan roots through brass canisters and gold leaf, why couldn’t a political party do the same with a change of wardrobe?
In the last few days, I’ve been picking the brains of political analysts, pollsters, and branding experts on the subject: “Can Umno be rebranded?” I asked.
During the recent Umno General Assembly, president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi emphasised that the party must step out of the “shadows of nostalgia” and undergo a comprehensive rebranding to remain a relevant and authoritative vehicle for the Malay struggle.
“If you can rebrand Najib, you can rebrand Umno,” said a pollster, referring to how Datuk Seri Najib Razak rebranded himself from elite prime minister to street-smart “Bossku” after he and Umno lost power in the 14th General Election in 2018.
Najib’s rebranding is the opposite of the Bacha and TWG branding. During his tenure as PM Najib cultivated an aristocratic image, often appearing in bespoke suits to project the authority of a global statesman.
However, following his electoral defeat in 2018, he became Bossku, trading his suits for hoodies to resonate with working-class youth. By adopting the street slang of the mat rempit culture and engaging in viral social media trolling of opponents, the former Umno president successfully rebranded himself as a relatable, approachable, Everyman hero.
When I covered the Indonesian presidential election in 2024, I saw how Prabowo Subianto’s rebranding was one of the most successful examples of “aesthetic softening” in modern South-East Asian politics. Like Najib’s pivot to Bossku, Prabowo realised that he had to transform from a feared figure into a relatable character people would vote for.
In his unsuccessful 2014 and 2019 runs against then president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, Prabowo presented a hardline, militant persona, characterised by a fiery, hot-headed temperament and a tegas (firm) leadership style.
In 2024, the former army general became a friendly bapak-bapak (fatherly figure), embracing the cuddly grandpa image known in Indonesia as gemoy (adorable) and showcasing his softer side as a dedicated cat lover.
By swapping his aggressive oratory for viral TikTok gemoy dances and lighthearted social media content, he successfully “erased” his controversial past and appealed to the Gen Z and millennial voter base. Ultimately, this successful pivot allowed him to capture the presidency in a landslide, proving that personality packaging can be just as decisive as policy in modern South-East Asian politics.
Another highly successful rebranding effort was the transformation of British prime minister Margaret Thatcher by global PR firm Saatchi & Saatchi. A Malaysian branding expert who used to work for the firm spoke about how Thatcher was transformed from a “grocer’s daughter” to the formidable Iron Lady.
For example, she was advised to transition from “suburban housewife” floral dresses and extravagant 1960s hats to “power uniforms” consisting of structured blue suits, pearls, and pussy-bow blouses, signalling that she was a serious professional in a male- dominated world.
The “grocer’s daughter” label was a myth: She was actually a wealthy barrister and a millionaire’s wife when she campaigned for prime minister in 1979. Saatchi & Saatchi highlighted her “humble origins above a shop”, allowing her to speak about the national economy with the authority of someone who knows “how to balance a household budget” – perhaps one of her most famous lines – making high-level economics relatable to the common voter.
I’m planning to visit Bangkok to observe the general election on Feb 8, especially the fortunes of the People’s Party, the latest reincarnation of Move Forward, which was the reincarnation of the Future Forward Party. I want to see if it can successfully turn away from depending on the rock star charisma of former leaders Pita Limjaroenrat and Thana-thorn Juangroongruangkit towards a more policy-focused brand under the pragmatic, tech-savvy leadership of Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut.
But the more fascinating “heritage” play lies with the Pheu Thai Party. Can the ultimate mastermind of populist politics, Thaksin Shinawatra, still make his party relevant to a new generation?
I also want to observe how Anutin Charnvirakul does. He savvily rebranded himself from a business-minded kingmaker into a seasoned prime minister by stabilising the government with a technocratic Cabinet and leveraging a nationalist “rally ’round the flag” sentiment during the recent border conflict with Cambodia.
In the end, whether we are sipping a Singaporean brew sold as a Moroccan legend or voting for an elite politician rebranded as an everyday hero, some of us are customers/voters who can be won over merely with the right branding.