Sir, - The decision of Jim McDaid, Minister for Tourism, to order the abandonment of the "embracing" logo which formed the core of the international Bord Failte/NITB marketing campaign for Ireland Inc. is very welcome.
Frankly, the much-criticised £100,000 logo was incomprehensible, even to many Irish people, so it must have been particularly confusing for our potential customers abroad, who for decades had been used to seeing the large shamrock logo on Bord Failte's and NITB's literature and advertisements.
The now abandoned Bord Failte/NITB logo, which (I think!) was meant to resemble two dancers circling a "tiny" shamrock, did integrate very professionally with other aspects of their promotional joint venture; but the shamrock component of the logo had been reduced to such an extent that it required a magnifying glass and all the skills of Sherlock Holmes to be able to identify it!
However, rather than revert to their former shamrock logos, Bord Failte and the NITB should now creatively update their old logos, while retaining the most important elements of their tried and tested, but dated, designs.
An excellent example of how to successfully update one's image is Aer Lingus's new logo, a superb, modern design, instantly recognisable and intelligible, which retained the essential elements of the old logo.
Logically the shamrock logos of Aer Lingus, Bord Failte and the NITB should be fairly similar, as these important Irish businesses have many common strategic objectives - essentially all three are working to contribute to Ireland Inc.'s prosperity, both north and south.
Well done, Minister, for having grasped this national nettle so decisively; common business sense has prevailed. However, let's not hammer Bord Failte or the NITB for having tried something new. At a cost of £100,000 we now have a much clearer understanding of the value of the Irish shamrock, which some had derided as being kitsch! - Yours, etc.,
Thomas Downey,
Bessbrook, Co Armagh.