Thalys (1996) and Fyra (2009)
The Thalys needed it's own name, because it was not going to be 'just another' train. Thalys is a name with a particularly French sound, but internationally easy to pronounce.
It reminds of 'talisman', the French lily and the coast adjacent to the traject: Thalasse. Besides, a name like Thalys can easily be connected to brand values like dynamic and speed.
13 years later, Thalys got a little sister: Fyra. Fyra is a bit less exclusive and rides shorter distances. You can hear that in the name.
Thalys: from generic train to brand concept
In 1995, the French (SNCF), Belgian (NMBS), Dutch (NS) and German (DB) railways joined hands by forming Westrail International, aiming to improve the network and connect Europe. Moreover, they wanted to profoundly change the image of rail travel by offering a concept that would be faster, more pleasant, more comfortable and more accessible for everybody in the four participating countries. After a European CT, Globrands was contracted for naming, and Total Identity for design.
Besides the starting values 'quick', 'pleasant', 'comfortable' and 'accessible' ('convivialité' was the key word), a name positioning was determined around key words like 'French' (SNCF conducted the project), 'dynamic', 'female', 'businesslike', 'accessible luxury' and 'innovating'. Of course, all international juridical and linguistic criteria had to be met.
The result, the Thalys brand, is surprising and original in several ways, and shows guts. The introduction in 1996 received considerable attention. International travel by train became fashionable again. In 2001 the share of train travel between Paris and Amsterdam had risen from 24 percent to 48 percent, and become larger than travel by car (from 63 to 45 percent in the same period).
Fyra
The Thalys concept has developed into a relatively exclusive brand, associated with French comfort and quality. It has become somewhat of a plane on rails, but with much more room and comfort, although the tickets have to be reserved in advance, like they do for air travel. This means that there is room for an easier way to travel fast by train. Younger, a bit more affordable and less luxury, but with all conveniences like wireless internet, power-points, television, a bar and comfortable chairs. Tickets should be obtained easily and the trains should ride with high frequency, so you can always catch one.
Accordingly, the next step of NS Hispeed, together with KLM and NMBS this time, consisted of a new concept for a fast connection between Amsterdam and Brussels. Compared to Thalys, this was to become a young and dynamic concept. Globrands got the assignment for name positioning and name creation, while DesignBridge was assigned to develop the design. Based on the values 'accessible', 'sparkling', 'warm', 'female', 'dynamic' and 'red', the name Fyra was developed, meeting all criteria.