Logo Evolution of World’s 7 Most Recognizable Brands

“Evolution is the secret for the next step.” – Karl Lagerfeld

A logo is the most recognizable identity of a brand. It is usually the first visual symbol that a company creates. When someone starts a business, there are hundreds of different things that need to be taken care of. They usually get caught up in more tangible and obvious works such as accounts, sales, staff, and clients. They don’t realize that the foremost thing that engages more audience than any of these things is the logo!

The history of logos dates back to the era when Greek rulers marked their coins with their pictures. The face of a ruler on coins legitimized domestic issuers and those involved in business transactions. But during the time of the Renaissance, modern logos came into existence. During that time stonemasons, potters and goldsmiths began to carve logos as a sign of their workmanship. With the beginning of the industrial era, various companies, factories, and mills started designing their logos by famous artists. Over time, innovative logo creation with expressive typography and color schemes played their part, and that was when trademarking the logos started.

A logo can have a great impact on a business. Sometimes it gets right in one go and sometimes it requires multiple revisions. Companies usually stick to their old logos. But to match the interest and changing needs of consumers, they have to modify a logo design so that they can keep themselves ahead in the competition.

Changing a logo can be very risky, especially for the ones who have already made a big name in their respective industries. But a lot of people took that risk and redesigned their logos. And fortunately, they not only succeeded in retaining their position in the industry but also in gathering the attention of the audience.

Let’s take a look on the logo evolution of the world’s most recognizable brands:

• Apple:

Apple has one of the most popular logos in history. Its first logo was created by Ronald Wayne, one of the co-founders of Apple, in the early days in 1976. The logo featured the popular scene of how Newton by sitting under an apple tree discovered gravity. However, the logo didn’t last very long. Jobs realized that the company needs a simple logo that could capture the attention of the audience easily. In 1977, the new logo got introduced, which was created by Rob Janoff. The logo featured the image of an apple in a rainbow-striped. It was that time when the world got introduced to the iconic Apple logo. Although the icon got evolved so many times, the shape and usage have never been changed. The current logo has been around us since 2015. The logo completely matches with the personality of the brand. When we think of Apple’s products, words like intelligent, sleek, accessible comes to our mind. The logo conveys just that. The simplicity in the logo has captured the minds of millions of users.

• McDonald’s:

When it comes to fast food logo design, McDonald’s is the company that knows a thing or two to grab the attention of the audience even from the distance. The company started its operations in 1994. During that period, burgers and barbecue were the only specialties of the company. That is why their first logo featured only ‘McDonald’s famous Barbecue’ text in black color. In 1948, the company revealed a new logo that featured a text “McDonald’s Famous Hamburgers” along with a tagline “Buy’em by the bag.” In 1953, the company introduced a new logo design that features only McDonald’s text. This time, the company gave a new color to its logo i.e., red.

After a huge success, Patrick’s sons remodeled their business and changed the architecture of the restaurant. The architect-designed the pillars of the building in the shape of golden arches, and it was that time when the iconic ‘Golden Arches’ logo got introduced (1960). The logo went through many changes throughout the years. The current logo has been with us since 2006. The logo features only the yellow color letter ‘M’, which has been created in the shape of an arch.

• Nike:

We all are aware of the Nike “Swoosh”, but many of us don’t know the history behind its design. It was in 1971 when the company introduced its first logo. The logo was designed by Carolyn Davidson – a graphic design student that Phill Knight met while teaching accountancy in Portland. Carolyn took inspiration from the brand’s namesake “Nike”, the Greek goddess of victory. The wings of the Goddess is called swoosh and is believed to have brought bravery and motivation to the soldiers heading to the battleground. 

The logo featured the brand name (in lowercase) with an overlapping ‘Swoosh’ symbol. Well, Phill didn’t like the design and kept on quoting “I don’t love it, but it will grow on me.” After seven years, the company revamped its logo and came up with a design where the cursive serif font was replaced with Futura Bold typeface. The ‘Swoosh’ symbol tilted a bit, which made enough space for the brand name to appear just above it, without any overlapping. The logo became so popular that in 1995, the company made a decision to eradicate the brand name from the design, leaving “Swoosh” as the only symbol of the company.

Fun Fact: Did you know that the company paid Carolyn Davidson $35 for designing a logo?

• Starbucks:

Founded in 1971, Starbucks has some of the most popular brand redesigns in history. Since the brand is famous for selling delicious flavors of coffee, it puts a lot of pressure for a brand to maintain a certain image. The logo design and branding have helped the brand in listing themselves among one of the world’s most recognizable brands. The brand’s first logo looked more historic and matched with the original idea of the business perfectly. As the company grew, the logo also kept evolving, giving it a fresher and modern look.

Throughout this evolution, there is one thing that has always been a significant part of the design is the image of the twin-tailed mermaid. According to Greek mythology, the mermaid was a mythical sea creature who, with her seductive song, attracted seamen to their death. The company decided to have her image in their logo design just to symbolize that their consumers are fascinated and addicted to their high-quality coffee. The current logo of the company has been around since 2011, and unlike previous logos, it features the image mermaid only.

• FedEx:

Formerly known as Federal Express, the company’s current logo is one of the best examples of highly clever and minimal design. Founded in 1973, the company’s original logo was designed with the name ‘Federal Express’ in red, purple, and white color. But since the time the company changed its name to FedEx (1991), the world got a masterpiece that sets the perfect example of negative space. The logo was designed by Lindon Leader – the ex-senior director at Landor Associates. It was created in black (Fed) and red (EX) colors. In 1994, the company again introduced its logo we know today.

 If you look closely at the design, you will find a hidden arrow between letters ‘E’ and ‘X.’ The arrow signifies speed and accuracy. The typography is more than a wordmark; it’s a usage of two fonts, Univers and Futura Bold, in a creative manner. Besides the courier service, the company also provides other services such as freight, office, trade networks, etc. And the best thing is that, for all the subsidiaries, the company has kept the same logo. They only have changed the color in ‘EX’, depending upon the business unite. For example, for freight services, the company has designed ‘EX’ in red color.

• Shell:

Shell is a multinational oil and gas company that started its operations in the early 1900s. Since the time of its inception, the company has changed its logo nine times. The company’s first logo was quite unimpressive. It featured an image of a mussel shell in black and white color. In 1909, the mussel shell was then replaced with a scallop shell. The company kept the same colors of the logo.

Till 1948, the company kept evolving its logo with the same colors. In 1948, the world gets to see a colored logo. The logo featured the image of a shell (resembles like a hot air balloon) with a company name on it. The colors used in the design were yellow and red. Again the logo couldn’t help the company to stand out in the industry. The logo got various makeovers, and it was in 1997, the company succeeded in standing out among competitors. The logo featured only the image of bright red and yellow colored shell, without a company name on it. And since then, the company continues to use the same logo.

• Coca-Cola:

The next company that has taken place on our list is one of the most popular beverage companies in the world. The company started its operations in 1886, and since the time of its inception, the company continued to have a wordmark logotype. The modifications were made only in the shape and color. All the logos featured the name of the company, except the one in 1985. The company’s first logo featured the company name in black and white color.  

Till 1940, the company kept the same color with little modifications in the typography. In 1947, the red color was added to the design. The logo was created in a red disc or button-shaped, along with the image of a button with the company name overlapping the bottle. In 1958, the button got replaced with a fishy shape. The name of the company was written inside that shape. In 1969, the logo took the square shape, and since then the company has not made any modifications in the shape of the logo. The fashionable and cursive typography of the current logo is so unique that when translated across languages, consumers can recognize it easily.

Conclusion:

Things change with time. To survive in the industry, companies have to make amendments as per the requirement. And these amendments are not only restricted to policies, products or services but in appearance too. So if you are also planning to create a new logo or make changes in the current design, then use an online logo maker tool that lets you create a logo within minutes.

Author Bio:

Jelly Shah works as a Digital Marketer, brand consultant and business strategist with Designhill- A reliable marketplace for Invitation maker, infographic maker, cosmetics & beauty logo design, custom cool tank tops, and many other designing works. With extensive experience working both client side and within the agency environment, he has authored several articles on topics related to digital marketing, business strategies, content marketing etc.