Let's walk through a rebrand that perfectly illustrates what it actually takes to go global.

Careem started as a regional ride-hailing app. Dubai-born. Built for the Middle East. Designed around the specific needs of Gulf customers, cash payments, Arabic-first interface, cultural understanding of how people actually moved around cities here.

By 2018, they were operating in 15 countries across the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. Over 30 million users. A billion-dollar valuation.

Then came the Uber acquisition. $3.1 billion. One of the largest tech exits in the region's history.

But here's what most people missed in that story: the rebrand that happened just before the acquisition wasn't about looking pretty for the sale. It was about proving Careem could compete on a global stage whilst staying true to its regional roots.

This is the story of how they did it. The decisions they made. The cultural tightrope they walked. And what a true global identity actually looks like when you refuse to abandon where you came from.

The Challenge: How to Look Global Without Losing Your Soul

Careem had a problem that many regional brands face when they scale.

Their original identity worked brilliantly in the Middle East. The green was distinctive. The friendly, approachable tone resonated. The product was built around local needs, supporting Arabic, accepting cash, understanding that "drop me near the landmark" was more useful than a precise GPS coordinate in many cities.

But as they expanded, they started competing with global players. Uber. Grab. Didi. Brands with massive budgets, international recognition, and visual identities that screamed "we're everywhere."

Careem risked looking like the scrappy regional alternative.

Investors wanted them to look credible on a global stage. But their customers, their drivers, their employees, they didn't want Careem to become just another Silicon Valley clone.

The rebrand brief was clear: look like you belong on the world stage, but don't stop being Middle Eastern whilst doing it.

The Identity Work: Staying True Whilst Growing Up

In 2018, Careem unveiled a complete visual overhaul.

The green stayed. That was non-negotiable. It was too embedded in the brand, too recognisable across the region. But everything else got refined.

The logo became cleaner. More geometric. The friendly, almost playful wordmark was replaced with something more confident. Still approachable, but with the kind of polish you'd expect from a company valued in the billions.

The colour palette expanded. The original Careem green was joined by complementary tones, warmer oranges and yellows that nodded to the region's aesthetic without being cliché. These weren't "desert" colours forced into the brand. They were thoughtful additions that gave the identity more flexibility.

The typography shifted. Arabic and English were treated as equals, not as primary and secondary scripts. The letterforms were designed to work harmoniously in both languages, something most global brands still get wrong when they localise.

And the iconography, the visual language around the app, became more sophisticated. Illustrations that felt human and warm, but with a level of craft that signalled this wasn't just a startup anymore.

What they didn't do was abandon their personality.

Careem could have gone the Uber route. Cold. Minimal. Algorithmic. Instead, they stayed warm. Kept the human touch. The rebrand was about growing up, not selling out.

The Messaging Shift: "Simplifying Lives" in Every Market

Here's where it gets interesting.

Careem's original tagline was functional. "Book a ride." Clear. Direct. Did the job.

The rebrand introduced a new positioning: "Simplifying and improving lives."

This was brilliant for two reasons.

First, it broadened what Careem could be. They weren't just a ride-hailing app anymore. They'd launched Careem Pay, a digital wallet. Careem Now, for food and grocery delivery. The brand needed to stretch beyond rides, and "simplifying lives" gave them that room.

Second, it was culturally adaptable. In the UAE, simplifying lives meant convenience, speed, reliability. In Pakistan, it meant economic opportunity for drivers, many of whom became financially independent through the platform. In Egypt, it meant safety and trust in a market where both were hard to find.

Same message. Different resonance depending on the market.

This wasn't marketing fluff. It was a genuinely flexible narrative that worked across 15 countries without needing to be rewritten for each one.

The Hurdles: Balancing Global Ambition with Regional Identity

Let's talk about what made this rebrand risky.

Hurdle one: Not losing the loyalty that built you.

Careem's early success came from understanding the region better than the global players. They knew drivers needed cash. They knew customers wanted to book rides for others. They knew that in many cities, a five-star rating system didn't account for local context.

If the rebrand made them look too Western, too corporate, too disconnected from those roots, they'd lose the trust that set them apart.

Hurdle two: Competing with Uber's visual dominance.

Uber's rebrand in 2018 was polarising, but it was undeniably bold. Confident. Global. Careem couldn't look timid by comparison. But they also couldn't just copy the playbook.

They had to look credible without looking derivative.

Hurdle three: Operating in wildly different markets simultaneously.

Careem in Dubai looked like a premium service. Careem in Karachi looked like an economic lifeline. Careem in Cairo looked like a safer alternative to unregulated taxis.

The rebrand had to work for all three. Same brand, completely different customer needs.

The Wins: What Actually Worked

Here's what Careem got right.

Win one: The bilingual equity.

Most global brands treat Arabic as an afterthought. A translated version of the "real" brand. Careem didn't. Arabic and English were designed together, weighted equally, and treated with the same level of craft.

This wasn't just good ethics. It was smart business. In markets where Arabic is the primary language, this showed respect. In markets where English dominated, it showed sophistication.

Win two: The humanity.

At a time when tech brands were obsessed with looking sleek and algorithmic, Careem leant into warmth. Their imagery featured real drivers. Real customers. Real moments.

This resonated in the Middle East, where personal relationships and human connection still matter more than efficiency alone.

And it differentiated them globally. Uber looked like a machine. Careem looked like people helping people.

Win three: The expansion narrative.

When Uber acquired Careem in 2020, the story wasn't "global giant swallows regional player." It was "the Middle East's tech success story gets recognised on the world stage."

That narrative only worked because Careem had rebranded in a way that made them look like equals, not underdogs. The visual identity, the messaging, the confidence, it all contributed to a story of regional ambition realised.

The Aftermath: What Happened After the Acquisition

Here's the interesting part.

Uber could have killed the Careem brand. Absorbed it. Rebranded everything as Uber and moved on.

They didn't.

Careem still operates independently. The brand still exists. The green is still everywhere across the Middle East.

Why? Because Careem had built something Uber couldn't replicate: regional trust.

The rebrand wasn't just about looking global. It was about cementing Careem's identity so strongly that even a $3.1 billion acquisition couldn't erase it.

That's the power of a rebrand done right. It doesn't just make you look good. It makes you impossible to replace.

What We Can Learn from This

Three massive takeaways.

One: Don't abandon what made you successful. Careem could have gone full Silicon Valley. They didn't. They stayed Middle Eastern whilst looking world-class. That's the balance every regional brand needs to find.

Two: Bilingual equity isn't optional if you're serious about global reach. If one language looks like the "real" brand and the other looks like a translation, you've already lost half your audience.

Three: A rebrand isn't just visual. It's strategic. Careem's rebrand worked because it aligned with their business expansion. New services. New markets. New ambitions. The identity supported the strategy, not the other way round.

The DARB Edge

We study rebrands like Careem's because they show what's possible when you refuse to choose between global ambition and regional authenticity.

Whether you're a UAE brand eyeing London or a UK brand entering the Gulf, the lesson is the same: you don't have to become something else to compete globally. You just have to express who you are in a language the world can understand.

That's what we help brands do. Stay true. Look credible. Scale without compromise.

Planning a rebrand that needs to work across borders? Let's make sure it lands in every market. Get in touch with DARB.