A bad experience: Controversy prompts return of Tourism Regina brand

After less than a month in existence, Experience Regina is no more.

Regina Exhibition Association Limited’s board of directors announced Thursday the organization that promotes tourism in the Queen City will return to its previous name of Tourism Regina and will reactivate its website and social channels under that brand.

“We looked at what we felt in the public — what we were hearing — (and we felt) that going back to Tourism Regina was the best thing that we could do at this time until the independent review is done,” board chair Wayne Morsky said during a media conference. “And then there (will be) more research done on the branding going forward.”

An update on our brand: pic.twitter.com/voKL0kTrjz

— Tourism Regina (@tourism_yqr) April 13, 2023

The new Experience Regina brand was unveiled March 16, but it wasn’t long before people started complaining about slogans like “Show us your Regina” and “The city that rhymes with fun.”

The response online prompted REAL president-CEO Tim Reid to issue an apology. Mayor Sandra Masters subsequently called the messaging “tone deaf,” but said she believed in the campaign.

The mayor told the Greg Morgan Morning Show on Thursday that she was confident REAL would look into the controversial rebranding.

“I think the board needs to understand where the gaps existed in their procedures and process and I think they need to fix whatever happened … and however it was allowed … for the website to go live without proper oversight,” Masters told Morgan.

Masters said city council will await the board’s review and she believes the board of REAL will hire an independent consultant to look into what happened. In the release issued later Thursday morning, the board said exactly that.

“The Board of Directors will also be undertaking an independent review, led by a third-party consultant, to examine all aspects of the development of the Experience Regina brand and launch,” the release said. “Any further actions related to Experience Regina will occur once the detailed and independent review is complete.

“The Board will also engage local and diverse community groups to develop an inclusive long-term brand strategy that supports the future positioning of Tourism Regina and all associated elements.”

During the media conference, Morsky said there wasn’t a timeline for how long the review would take or how much a third-party consultant would cost.

“We’re in the final stages of negotiating the contract with the consultant and so I can’t report on the exact cost or time at this time,” he said.

Morsky also couldn’t say how much the now-failed rebranding of Tourism Regina cost.

There has been speculation about Reid’s future given the controversy and he wasn’t at Thursday’s media conference. Morsky was asked about Reid’s status.

“At this time, the status is status quo until the independent review is completed and then the board of directors will make any decisions going forward at that time,” Morsky said.