The 2013 horsemeat adulteration scandal provides the most recent illustration of how negative ‘signals’ can undermine stakeholder trust and corporate images. This study compares and contrasts the corporate identity and crisis response of two large UK grocery retailers, Tesco and Morrisons. Using a comparative case study design, it makes a two-fold contribution: first, the analysis of the recent horsemeat scandal breaks new empirical ground. Secondly, this study fills an analytical void, by reconciling the separate literatures on corporate identity and crisis management. The empirical findings highlight that corporate identity is a major but conditional resource for managing reputational crises effectively. It requires the consistent alignment of internal and external identity. These results have important implications. For one, future research should ensure a more nuanced theoretical discussion of corporate identity. Furthermore, an important practical lesson for retail managers is that strong corporate reputations require long-term management horizons and a proactive approach to corporate accountability.