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What's funny is that this change made me realize I've always referred to them as Games Workshop paint.

Something people should keep in mind is that GW executives have less to do than the Maytag Repair Man. It's surprising stuff like this doesn't happen more often actually.

MaxT wrote:

 Lord Damocles wrote:

 Cruentus wrote:
Wait, I’m supposed to use these to paint Warhammer models? I’ve only been using them to paint Citadels. Imagine my confusion. I’m glad they’ve cleared that up.

It's perfectly understandable.

GW's customers are so monumentally stupid that they go into a store called Warhammer, which sells entirely Warhammer products, with the staff wearing Warhammer branded clothing; but then get confused when they focus in on the paint pots which say Citadel.


(Before somebody gets their panties in a twist; that isn't my opinion - it's literally GW's explanation!)

And if that was the ONLY place you can buy them, you'd have a point. But it isn't. Put a new customer in the middle of Firestorm games or any FLGS and they would be hard pressed to point out the "Warhammer" paints among the dozen or so other brands.

But at that point they have already sold the paint to the 3rd party store, at a lower profit than direct to buyers. I thought at this point GW were basically supporting3rd party stores in sufferance.

Glad its just a brand name change and they are not changing the fomula / colours / colour names.

Will be sad to see the end of the Citadel brand after all these years.

Warhammer has a level of brand recognition that nothing else comes near to. I've literally had people look at boxes of board games in my background on a call (stuff like Arkham Horror, Dice Throne, Tainted Grail) and ask "oh is that Warhammer stuff?"

It's so much more recognisable to the general public than "Games Workshop" or "Citadel".

Yeah in the UK if you say Warhammer or Space Marine the vast majority of people know what you mean. If you don't you just say "those really expensive model toys" and people get it.

UK side having stores on every major highstreet paid off with recognition that nothing else in the wargame miniature market has.

 Overread wrote:
Yeah in the UK if you say Warhammer or Space Marine the vast majority of people know what you mean. If you don't you just say "those really expensive model toys" and people get it.

UK side having stores on every major highstreet paid off with recognition that nothing else in the wargame miniature market has.

Exactly, there are countries that dont have, even 1 GW store, so I doubt it will be that mainstream over there.

What a depressing thread

I still think of my local GW as a GW and not a Warhammer.

Warhammer is almost a genericised term. The way people might refer to any console as X-Box or PlayStation, or any vacuum cleaner as a hoover (and indeed, I need to do the hoovering).

So, why not lean into that? If most folk know what you sell as Warhammer, and refer to your stores as the Warhammer Shop? Just…accept and embrace that.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Warhammer is almost a genericised term. The way people might refer to any console as X-Box or PlayStation, or any vacuum cleaner as a hoover (and indeed, I need to do the hoovering).

So, why not lean into that?

Because even though Tzeentch has always been my favourite Chaos god, I do not in fact like change, darn it!

 Coenus Scaldingus wrote:

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Warhammer is almost a genericised term. The way people might refer to any console as X-Box or PlayStation, or any vacuum cleaner as a hoover (and indeed, I need to do the hoovering).

So, why not lean into that?

Because even though Tzeentch has always been my favourite Chaos god, I do not in fact like change, darn it!

Sounds like the perfect way for Tzeentch to reward a loyal follower

 Overread wrote:

 Coenus Scaldingus wrote:

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Warhammer is almost a genericised term. The way people might refer to any console as X-Box or PlayStation, or any vacuum cleaner as a hoover (and indeed, I need to do the hoovering).

So, why not lean into that?

Because even though Tzeentch has always been my favourite Chaos god, I do not in fact like change, darn it!

Sounds like the perfect way for Tzeentch to reward a loyal follower

If this sort of thing continues I'll convert to Malal, mark my words!

 Nevelon wrote:

 Mentlegen324 wrote:

 Lathe Biosas wrote:
GW's Instagram puts it all in perspective...

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVjBecLjRyN/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

This comes across as more like a problem they've made up just to give an excuse for this really. No ones going into a GW shop looking specifically for "Warhammer Paints" and then being too confused that literally the only paint in the shop isn't called that. I doubt they even consider what the name is.

It’s probably not an issue in physical stores. Although having worked in retail, the stupidly of people has no lower bounds.

But online? For people not in the know, how would you know what the “official” paint is? Lot of room for confusion.

Makes sense to steamline and consolidate the branding.

I don't know, being offered for sale on GW's own website would probably be a fairly significant clue. Also if we follow that logic, I trust we can soon look forward to just plain WARHAMMER MAGAZINE because there might be a hypothetical grandma or very very stupid person out there who isn't absolutely 100% sure that the White Dwarf on their local newsie shelf is the Official magazine.

I never understood the "everything must consolidate" approach tbh, sub-brands are a useful way of organising your products. Previously when someone said "Warhammer" everyone would understand they referred to the game. Now they could mean games, paints, stores, the corporate entity responsible for making all of those things. Seems more like some flash young MBA out to make their mark has had the genius notion that if they abandon the existing brand for "Warhammer" then every time someone searches for "warhammer paints" or "paints for warhammer" then the official product will be the first result! Being an MBA and so a bit of a dim bulb, they of course wouldn't grasp why SEO makes that redundant.

Eh, dunno why I'm being grumpy, this is just making official what has been the case in practice for years and years: Old GW is dead, long live Warhammer(the company - see what I mean?).

 Flinty wrote:

ccs wrote:

 Nevelon wrote:

 Mentlegen324 wrote:

 Lathe Biosas wrote:
GW's Instagram puts it all in perspective...

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVjBecLjRyN/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

This comes across as more like a problem they've made up just to give an excuse for this really. No ones going into a GW shop looking specifically for "Warhammer Paints" and then being too confused that literally the only paint in the shop isn't called that. I doubt they even consider what the name is.

It’s probably not an issue in physical stores. Although having worked in retail, the stupidly of people has no lower bounds.

But online? For people not in the know, how would you know what the “official” paint is? Lot of room for confusion.

They're already online, they can just Google it.

People who are not in the know, or particularly interested, will be buying stuff from GW's official webstore, so its the only option. No googling is required really.

Maybe. But if I were to place a bet I'd say Amazon.

 YodhrinsForge wrote:

I don't know, being offered for sale on GW's own website would probably be a fairly significant clue. Also if we follow that logic, I trust we can soon look forward to just plain WARHAMMER MAGAZINE because there might be a hypothetical grandma or very very stupid person out there who isn't absolutely 100% sure that the White Dwarf on their local newsie shelf is the Official magazine.

Even online its good to have consolidated names for those using google to find things and looking for "Warhammer Paint".


Also lets face it, White Dwarf as a known brand and name is way more talked about than Citadel Paints. Even in casual conversation most of us would tall them Warhammer or GW paints by default rather than Citadel. Heck until this name change the Citadel term hardly ever really came up anywhere before in ages.

Having multiple subbrands is a good thing, but when a subbrand isn't being branded, marketed and pushed as a brand it just loses all power. Citadel lost that power a long long time ago and honestly I don't see any value for GW in trying to invest and make it a bigger brand as its unlikely to actually generate any more customers.

 Overread wrote:

Also lets face it, White Dwarf as a known brand and name is way more talked about than Citadel Paints

Is it? I've literally never heard anybody talk about White Dwarf who wasn't a Warhammer™ hobbyist (and most of them about classic eras only).

I feel the urge to walk into a Warhammer store, peruse the paint rack, ponder for a while, then go to walk out.
As I walk out, the store assistant will no doubt ask me if there was anything I needed. I'll say I was looking for Citadel Paints.

 Lord Damocles wrote:

 Overread wrote:

Also lets face it, White Dwarf as a known brand and name is way more talked about than Citadel Paints

Is it? I've literally never heard anybody talk about White Dwarf who wasn't a Warhammer™ hobbyist (and most of them about classic eras only).

But you HAVE heard of people talking about it. As I noted Citadel isn't even really spoken about between fans.

 YodhrinsForge wrote:
Previously when someone said "Warhammer" everyone would understand they referred to the game

Which game, though? None of GW's current games are actually called just "Warhammer", and I think the original Warhammer was called "Warhammer Fantasy Battles" (or variations thereof) since Warhammer 40k came out. I do remember that in the 90s "Warhammer" meant Warhammer Fantasy, but now Fantasy is long gone, so I would honestly not be sure which game you meant if you said "Warhammer" - although I'd probably assume it's one of GW's main games, and certainly a GW game at all. If you were of a certain age and disposition, I might guess that you meant The Old World.

Maybe they rebrand the WD next to the WARHAMMER MAGAZINE...

Didn't they have a Warhammer Magazine at one time?

 Overread wrote:
Didn't they have a Warhammer Magazine at one time?

Wasn’t the art mag they did for a while Warhammer Visions?

 Overread wrote:
Didn't they have a Warhammer Magazine at one time?

Warhammer Monthly was a thing (Black Library comic) as was Warhammer: Visions (monthly magazine when WD went weekly). There's also the Hachette Partworks - Warhammer 40,000: Combat Patrol, Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Spearhead, etc.

 Overread wrote:
Even online its good to have consolidated names for those using google to find things and looking for "Warhammer Paint".

Before the rebrand, the top search response I got for 'Warhammer Paint' was a link to GW's website that read 'Citadel Colour - The Warhammer Paint'.


The rebrand makes sense purely from a branding perspective. It's always a shame to see long-running institutions go away, though.


I'll not lose a lot of sleep over it, though, given that outside of a few useful Contrast colours, I stopped buying Citadel paints a couple of range changes ago, as I finally got sick of them cutting colours I was using... so maintaining an attachment to the branding seems a little pointless.

Instead of a name change, they should discarge their Pots.

RazorEdge wrote:
Instead of a name change, they should discarge their Pots.

Oh they'll do that eventually don't worry.

And they'll:
A) change the pot dimensions so FLGS have to invest in all new racks.
B) change many of the names
C) change the color shade of anything that shares a previously used name.

what they WON'T do is improve the paint or the pots.

ccs wrote:

RazorEdge wrote:
Instead of a name change, they should discarge their Pots.

Oh they'll do that eventually don't worry.

And they'll:
A) change the pot dimensions so FLGS have to invest in all new racks.
B) change many of the names
C) change the color shade of anything that shares a previously used name.

what they WON'T do is improve the paint or the pots.

I always liked the Privateer press paint pots, I still use some of mine from mk 2 since they were sealed so tight. Which sadly is probably why GW won’t change them!

GW used Similary Pots in the early 90s....

 Overread wrote:

 Lord Damocles wrote:

 Overread wrote:

Also lets face it, White Dwarf as a known brand and name is way more talked about than Citadel Paints

Is it? I've literally never heard anybody talk about White Dwarf who wasn't a Warhammer™ hobbyist (and most of them about classic eras only).

But you HAVE heard of people talking about it. As I noted Citadel isn't even really spoken about between fans.

I do think that's a really good point, just thinking about those YouTube videos where they compare paint brands and such and I'm sure it's nearly always "GW paints" not "citadel".

RazorEdge wrote:
GW used Similary Pots in the early 90s....

They weren't just similar, they were the same pots. The company that makes P3 paint is the same one that made the original Citadel paints, and still makes them under the Coat D'arms label.