Do you know your Gucci from your Galliano? Your Levi's from your Lincoln? Brand names are part of our pop-culture psyche. However, corporations and luxury brands occasionally have been known to rattle the world by changing monikers.

French luxury group PPR, whose portfolio includes brands such as Puma, Balenciaga and Saint Laurent, recently announced that it is officially changing its name to Kering (pronounced "caring"). The word "ker" is a Breton word that translates to﻿ "home"; according to company Chairman and Chief Executive Francois-Henri Pinault, that better reflects the company's recently narrowed focus on its apparel and accessories brands.

Take our quiz on brand names that have changed and see if you can pick out the real names from the false ones we've planted.

1. Which of the following labels is a PPR marquee luxury brand that began as a saddle and leather goods brand in 1906 before branching into fashion apparel?

a) Hermes

b) Bottega Veneta

c) Gucci

d) Chanel

2. In 2003, the parent company of Philip Morris USA and Kraft Foods changed its name from Philip Morris Cos. Inc. to what?

a) Advair

b) Altria

c) Altus

d) Antrim

3. What American heritage brand adopted its current name in 1850 when it was inherited by three men named Elisha, Daniel and John?

a) Levi Strauss & Co.

b) Brooks Bros.

c) Hart Schaffner Marx

d) Sears, Roebuck & Co.

4. After a U.K. court case brought by the World Wide Fund for Nature, the World Wrestling Federation started using which new name?

a) World Wrestling Exhibition

b) Global Grappling Federation

c) International Wrestling Federation

d) World Wrestling Entertainment

5. Before changing to "Lauren," the namesake of the Ralph Lauren fashion empire had what last name?

a) Lutz

b) Liebowitz

c) Lifshitz

d) Lebovitch

6. In late 2012, which luxury car brand announced it would be adding the words "Motor Company" back to its official name?

a) Cadillac

b) Mercedes-Benz

c) Rolls-Royce

d) Lincoln

7. French luxury brand Yves Saint Laurent's shift to using the shorter name "Saint Laurent" coincided with the arrival of which high-profile designer?

a) Hedi Slimane

b) Tom Ford

c) John Galliano

d) Alber Elbaz

8. As of the 2013-14 season, the NBA franchise known as the New Orleans Hornets will go by what new name?

a) The New Orleans Voo Doo

b) The New Orleans Pelicans

c) The New Orleans Jazz

d) The New Orleans Cajuns

9. Fashion company Liz Claiborne Inc. changed its name to Fifth & Pacific Cos. Inc. in 2012, following the sale of its namesake apparel brand to which retailer?

a) Target

b) Sears Holdings/Kmart

c) J.C. Penney

d) Kohl's

10. What luxury brand announced in January 2013 that it planned to sell its diamond jewelry and watch business to Swatch and continue in the diamond mining business under the new name Dominion Diamond Corp.?

a) Tiffany & Co.

b) Harry Winston

c) Cartier

d) Van Cleef & Arpels


1. C. The House of Gucci, instantly recognizable by its interlocking double G logo, was founded in Florence, Italy, by Guccio Gucci in 1921.
2. B. Although it changed its name to Altria, it held on to the stock symbol "MO."
3. B. Brooks Bros. was founded by Henry Sands Brooks and first known as * and D.H. Brooks & Co. before it was inherited by his sons -- the eponymous Brooks Bros. brothers.
4. D. The group has rebranded as World Wrestling Entertainment -- but it still looks totally fake.
5. C. He was born Ralph Lifshitz -- and, in case you didn't get the memo, his current last name is pronounced like Lauren Hutton's first name, not Sophia Loren's last name. 
6. D. Lincoln reverted to the Lincoln Motor Co. and has even included a top-hatted Abe Lincoln in some of its recent television ads.
7. A. The "Yves" got kicked to the curb when Hedi Slimane took the reins.
8. B. The new name will be the New Orleans Pelicans. The New Orleans franchise known as the Jazz departed to Utah in 1979.
9. C. In October 2011, J.C. Penney Co. said it had reached an agreement to pay $267.5 million for the Liz Claiborne brands and the fashion-jewelry brand Monet.
10. B. It's not the first name change for Toronto-based Harry Winston Diamond Corp., which was known as Aber Diamond Corp. until an official name change in 2007.