Signs of branded clothing. Clothing brand logos - the meaning of fashion brand logos

Logo - graphic image trademark. It is created for easy recognition of the company's brand among consumers.
The logo must be unique and of high quality, attracting the attention of the buyer. Logos were created to differentiate products from manufacturers in the same industry.

The KOLORO company develops one-of-a-kind logos.

There are several types of logos:

1. “Letter” logo – one or more letters are used.
2. Logo “Symbol” - depicted in the form of graphic or alphabetic symbols.
3. Logo "Emblem" is a graphic element of image and text.
4. Logo "Logoslovo" - consists only of letters.
5. Logo "Abstract sign" - creates visual form company concept using symbol.

The first logo in the world

The first logo in the world was an image of a dog listening to a gramophone. The dog's name was Nipper.
One of the brothers of the Barro family saw how the dog loved to listen to the Edison-Bell phonograph and decided to capture this moment by drawing a picture “A dog listening to a phonograph.”

In 1900, Marc Barrot's brother, Francis, took Nipper's drawing to a disc gramophone company. The owners of the company really liked the drawing and decided to produce their product with this image. But original version The picture depicting a drum gramophone was replaced with a disk one. The drawing became the first trademark of the companies: “HMV music stores”, RCA, “Victor and HMV records”. The company also began releasing records with Nipper's designs.
The logo currently uses the music channel of the HWV store.

The evolution of global brand logos

Logos of global brands have not always looked stylish and laconic. Some companies, even being popular among consumers, have redrawn their logos. Main reasons:

• change in direction of activity;
• following new trends.

Let's look at a few examples of the evolution of company logos.

• Global Apple Corporation

The company's first logo was an engraving of Isaac Newton under an apple tree, which was surrounded by a large ribbon with the signature "Apple Computer Co" (1976-1977). The designer of this logo was one of the founders of the company, Ronald Wayne. After Ronald left, the logo was changed.

The second Apple logo was made by designer Rob Yanov. Nothing remains of the company’s old logo, except, perhaps, the idea of ​​a fruit falling on Newton’s head. The new Apple logo is a rainbow bitten apple (1977-1998).

The logo that we see now on Apple products was changed in 2007. The “apple” became metallic with reflections, but the shape remained the same.

• Samsung

Samsung means “three stars” in Korean. The company was founded in South Korea. The first three logos used stars and the Samsung name.

In 1993, the company decided to create a new logo for its 55th anniversary. It exists before today. This is a blue ellipse in the center of which “SAMSUNG” is written in white stylized letters.

• Twix bars

The first bars were produced in 1967 in Britain. They were called Raider. But a few years later, in 1979, the name was changed. Raider became Twix. After changing the name, products began to be exported to the USA.

The name Twix is ​​made up of two words, “double” and “biscuit”. Twix bars are very popular all over the world. In Ireland they are still sold under the original name Raider.

• Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola has the most recognizable corporate logo style, which is over 117 years old. The company was founded in 1886 and its logo in 1893. The company logo is written in "Spencer" calligraphic font. It was created by Frank Robinson, an accountant and friend of the company owner.

In the early 1980s, due to competition from Pepsi products, it was decided to change the company's logo to New Coke. After making this marketing move, the company began to lose sales. Consumers did not like the new name of the drink. After some time, the drink was returned to its former name Coca-Cola, thereby improving its sales.

• Pepsi

In 1903, the Pepsi-Cola brand was created. Agree, the company’s first logo is not very pretty. You could say it was a failure.
To prevent this from happening to your brand, you need to contact a team of professionals at KOLORO, who will help make the logo perfect.

After the Great Depression of the 1930s, Pepsi-Cola was able to prove to Coca-Cola that it could compete on the same level.

In 1962, the company changed its logo to a three-color ball and also removed the Cola prefix. Now it is called only Pepsi. However, the company logo changes very often. What this is connected with is unknown.

• McDonald's

In 1940, McDonald's was created. The company's first logo is an image of a Speedee chef . Later the Speedee logo was redrawn. In the 60s, Jim Spindler changed the company logo to the one we know today. And this is the letter M.

Fashion industry logos (famous fashion brands)

Almost each of us can recognize and name brand monograms. For fashion houses, the logo has a very important, because most fashion houses are named after the founding designers.

• Louis Vuitton

The fashion house was created in 1854. The company's corporate logo is the LV monogram. The color of the monograms and canvas may have changed, but the logo of this brand itself has not changed to this day, except that it was slightly simplified in the 2000s.
The brand's clothing is made from very quality materials and therefore the products are expensive.

Louis Vuitton brand products are the most copied. But it is very easy to recognize a fake - in the original, the brand logo is always located symmetrically.

• Chanel

The Chanel logo first appeared in 1921. It was depicted on the bottle of Chanel No. 5 perfume. The company logo is a double letter C. It resembles two wedding rings, which are not closed together. The letter C is the initials of Coco Chanel.

• Fendi

The Fendi logo was created in 1972 by the company's new designer, Karl Lagerfeld. The brand logo is a large F that is mirrored.

• Versace

The Versace house logo is very extravagant and extraordinary. It was designed in 1978 by Gianni Versace. The logo represents the head of a representative of ancient Greek mythology - Medusa the Gorgon. The designer explained why he chose this character: “This is a synthesis of beauty and simplicity that can hypnotize anyone, just like the clothes produced by the brand.”

• Givenchy

In 1952, the Givenchy brand began producing clothing. high quality, as well as the line jewelry and perfumes. The brand logo is very simple and concise. The quadruple G is placed in a square. It looks like Celtic jewelry.

Car brand logos

"Winged" cars:

Bentley- British luxury car. The characteristics of the car can be described in just two words - aristocratic luxury. The car's logo is the letter "B" enclosed in the wings. The emblem indicates the power, speed and elegance of Bentley limousines.

Aston Martin- The car logo was created in 1927. These are eagle wings that frame the Aston Martin inscription. The company's owners compared their car to an eagle. Because the eagle is a fast, agile and predatory bird.

Chrysler- The first logo of American cars was a pentagonal star created in 1923. After the company joined the German concern Daimler AG in 1998, the logo was changed to “open wings.” They demonstrate the virtuosity and uniqueness of Chrysler vehicles.

Cars with animal logo

Jaguar- whose emblem was originally SS - Swallow Sidecar. In English, “swallow” means “swallow.” After the Second World War, most Europeans had negative associations with the SS emblem (association with fascists), so the company owners decided to change the name of the brand. The Swallow Sidecar has been replaced by a Jaguar. Agree, strength, elegance and grace are very suitable for modern Jaguar cars.

Lamborghini— at first the Italian company was engaged in the production of tractors. Therefore, the bull became the emblem of the company. This animal is very hardy and strong. Nowadays, Lamborghini cars are powerful, expensive supercars, and the golden bull emblem suits them very well.

Ferrari— the car logo of this brand is familiar to everyone. Its main attributes are a prancing black stallion on a yellow-gold background with a painted Italian flag at the top of the logo.

The Ferrari emblem was originally on the plane of pilot Francesco Baracca during the First World War. Enzo Ferrari asked Francesco to give him this logo. The pilot agreed and gave Enzo the right to use the logo.

The best music industry logos

Virgin is a British record label. Created in 1972 by Richard Branson and Simon Draper. The name of the label is very interesting. Virgin in English means “virgin”.

The Virgin Records logo (the first company) was created by English illustrator Roger Dean.

A few years later, the Virgin brand became very popular among English performers. After Virgin signed punk rock band the Sex Pistols, Branson decided the company lacked chutzpah. Therefore, it was decided to change the company logo.

Legend has it that one of the artists drew the new logo we know today on a napkin. Branson really liked it. Richard associated the new logo with his company. “Simplicity, attitude and energy are about us,” said Branson.

Sony Music Entertainment- created in 1988 and owned by Sony. One of the "Big Four" record companies in the world. Sony Music covers almost all show business.

The company's first logo was multi-colored, small triangles in the middle of which were the letters SMV. The company logo changed very often. In 2009, Sony Music decided to make the logo completely different. The new logo looks like this: a simple red brush effect on a white background and the text “SONY MUSIC” appears in the appropriate Sony font.

AC/DC- a world famous rock band. Most people may not be familiar with the band's work, but everyone recognizes the AC/DC logo.

Creative director Bob Defrin helped create the logo for the rock band. The font was chosen from the Gutenberg Bible, the first ever printed book.

Huerta's intention was to create an emblem based on the biblical imagery of the AC/DC song "Let There Be Rock." Of course, the lightning and blood red coloration suggest the presence of less angelic influences.

The Rolling Stones are a famous British rock band. Designer John Pache helped create the group's logo. He received 50 pounds for his work. The designer was inspired by Mick Jagger's expressive lips and tongue. It was also inspired by the Hindu goddess Kali.

Queen- British rock band of the mid-1970s. She captivated the hearts of many listeners. The logo was created by the lead singer of the group, Freddie Mercury. He depicted the letter Q (the name of the group), which is surrounded by the zodiac signs of the band's musicians.

Logo Design Trends 2017

Design trends change almost every season. This applies not only to clothing, makeup and style, but also to trends in logo graphic design.
Logo trends 2017

Minimalism

Many companies resort to this style, because minimalism is simplicity and conciseness. Minimalism uses very little color ranges. Everything should be simple and executed in the same style, without unnecessary additions.

For example, the well-known application Instagram used this style.

The company's first logo was a black and white image of a Polaroid OneStep camera. In May 2016, the company decided to rebrand not only the logo, but also change the design of the application. Now it's a camera and a rainbow made with a gradient effect.

Gradient colors

Creating a logo with a gradient of colors is a very good move for many companies, because this trend will be at the peak of popularity for a long time. A striking example is the international payment system MasterCard. The company's designers simplified the design and used fill geometric shapes logo.

Black and white trend

Black and white design will always be in trend. Laconicism and simplicity of two colors is always a win-win option.

The best example is the world famous brand Nike.

Carolyn Davidson helped create the logo for the brand. The logo features an abstract wing of the goddess Nike.

Geometric shapes

To create a unique but at the same time simple logo, designers use geometric shapes that are very easy to perceive and remember.

Example - logo YouTube - a service that provides video hosting services. The brand logo is a “bubble” in the middle of which there is a “play” icon.

Lettering

Quite a simple style. Letters are selected specifically for a specific name or text and are used only once.

Lettering can include a company logo Google. The company's first logo was created in a graphics editor by co-founder Sergey Brin. The designer of the new Google logo style was Ruth Kedar. It was she who came up with the logo design that we know now.

hand drawn

Hand-drawn logos look clear and “folk-like”. Many world famous companies use this style.

Johnson & Johnson — good example new trend of 2017. The company logo is very simple - red text on a white background, handwritten.

Web animated logos

Web animated logos are a trend for 2017. They look very bright, extraordinary. With the help of Gif logos you can attract the attention of consumers.

Disney has been using this trend for a long time. Back in 1985, Tinker Bell began flying over Sleeping Beauty's Castle.

KOLORO company will develop for you unique design your logo, because our specialists are always up to date with new trends in global design.

These original and memorable images accompany us everywhere. The logos of famous clothing brands are well known to many fashionistas; car enthusiasts will unmistakably recognize the manufacturer by the badge on the hood. What can we say about the trademarks of companies manufacturing household appliances and electronics. They are well known even to children.

Have you ever wondered who and how created the logos of famous brands in the world? What do they mean? Why does a seemingly simple picture become the calling card of a company and is recognized all over the world? I must say that the history of logos of famous brands is sometimes very interesting. Meet some of them.

Versace

Not all logos of famous brands are as recognizable as this mysterious and catchy sign, which the famous fashion designer began using in 1978. It became another decoration of his magnificent collections. Since then, the head of the Gorgon Medusa, located in a circle, has become the trademark of this fashion house.

When the couturier was asked questions about the rather strange choice of logo, he replied that it was a symbol of fatal charms and beauty that could hypnotize and paralyze any person. And I must say, maestro Versace achieved his goal - his logo is known all over the world. He became a symbol perfect taste, sophisticated style and luxury.

Givenchy

Photos of logos of famous brands often appear on the pages of glossy magazines. This square, consisting of four letters G and similar to a stylized clover leaf, represents strict lines and harmony. Some experts in the field of symbolism are confident that the company used rules developed in Ancient Greece to create it.

Givenchy uses the logo as embellishment and print, which is popular and recognizable all over the world.

Lacoste

Logos of famous brands and their names can be found in many fashion magazines. And this little green crocodile does not need advertising, since it has long become a trademark of the Lacoste company, which is famous throughout the world primarily for its polo shirts.

Probably not everyone knows how this sign appeared. It is not a combination of letters that define the name of the owner of the company. Jean Rene Lacoste was a former successful tennis player; in narrow circles he was called the Alligator. He founded his own company in 1993, which was focused on sportswear for tennis players.

The trademark was created spontaneously. For fun, one of Lacoste’s comrades drew a funny little crocodile, which a little later became the logo of the new brand. Today, the fruit of this, admittedly successful, joke is one of the most recognizable in the world.

Chupa Chups and... Salvador Dali

If you think that logos of famous brands are not known to children whose parents are far from fashion, then you are mistaken. A striking example of this is the company Chupa Chups. All kids in our country know this product. But how is the great artist connected with it?

One of the most famous and prominent representatives of surrealism, artist and graphic artist, director and sculptor, writer contributed to the development and prosperity of this company. After all, it was Salvador Dali who created the logo of the world-famous sweet lollipops. We must pay tribute to the founders of the company - they did not spare a substantial amount and invited the artist Salvador Dali, already famous at that time, to create the logo.

It should be noted that their costs paid off with interest. The trademark turned out to be bright, simple, interesting and at the same time understandable and unobtrusive. According to the artist himself, this work took him no more than an hour. In the color scheme, he used the colors of the Spanish flag, rounded the letters a little and placed them in a frame.

Nike and Carolyn Davidson

Logos of famous companies and brands are sometimes striking in their simplicity. Therefore, many are interested in the question of why they are so memorable. An example of this is the Nike company and its laconic “tick”. When the company announced a competition to create a logo, Portland State student Carolyn Davidson entered.

It is interesting that at that time her sign did not cause much delight among the company’s owners, however, they found it quite promising. It's funny, but Carolyn received only thirty-five dollars for her original work. I wonder how much brand owners value their logo now?

Apple

Logos of famous brands often amaze with their originality. Millions of people around the world know what the Apple logo looks like. And most of them know about the company's founder, Steve Jobs. However, the name of the creator of this famous logo is known to few. Most people think that the bitten apple was invented by Steve, but this is a misconception.

In the beginning, Apple had a different trademark (Newton writing something while sitting under a tree). Steve didn’t like this option, because since his youth he had gravitated toward minimalism and simplicity. He said: “Icons should look so that you want to lick them.”

He set such a difficult task for Rob Yanov, the designer who worked on the new Apple logo. The only desire voiced by Jobs: “Don’t make it sweet.” A few weeks later, several sketches of rainbow apples (bitten and whole) lay on Steve's desk. Jobs chose the well-known option, which seemed more interesting and original to him.

NeXT

Logos of famous brands sometimes have special meaning for business owners. This happened to the founder of the company Apple Steve om Jobs. He had to face many problems in his life. He was even fired from the company he founded. But Steve cannot be classified as one of the people who is broken by life's adversities. After leaving Apple, he very soon founded another computer equipment company and called it NeXT. The name turned out to be symbolic - “next”. Probably, Jobs emphasized that he could not be stopped, and he would create the next company with even greater enthusiasm and fervor.

But let’s return to the history of the creation of this world-famous logo. It was commissioned to be developed by the famous graphic designer Paul Rand. He put forward a strict condition to Jobs: “You pay me 100 thousand dollars for one logo option that will certainly suit you.”

As a result of this collaboration, the world recognized the NeXT inscription, made in the style of Steve Jobs. The sketch was accepted immediately, without any changes. The only thing Steve wanted to change was highlighting the letter E yellow. It should be noted that Paul Rand previously created logos for the huge computer corporation IBM, the global goods delivery service UPS, and more than a dozen other medium and small companies.

Coca-Cola

When we see logos of famous brands, which undoubtedly include the Coca-Cola Corporation, it seems that they were developed by teams of professional marketers and designers. But in in this case everything was different. The logo for this company was developed by an ordinary employee of the company, accountant Frank Robinson.

At that time, the company did not yet have its current name, and it was Frank who chose it - Coca-Cola. He placed the name on a red background, and used the standard cursive for writing at that time. This font was then considered the standard of calligraphy. This is how one of the most recognizable logos of our time appeared before the world. True, about once every ten years the company slightly modifies its trademark. But the special font remains unchanged, as well as the red and white colors.

Three-pointed star

All motorists dream of owning a car with such a logo. The Mercedes company was founded in 1926. And the logo, known today all over the world, appeared much later. The company voices the official version of its meaning as the trinity - air, earth and water.

It is in cars (on land), in boats and yachts (on water), in airplanes (in air) that engines produced in factories are used. There is also an unofficial version that says that such a star was first used by Gottlieb Daimler, the founder of Mercedes-Benz. In a letter to his wife, he used this symbol to indicate the place where his new home. The sons of the company's founder slightly modernized their father's star, and it became the company logo.

Three most popular stripes

And this logo represents not just a brand, but a huge industry, which is a trendsetter in sports fashion for several generations of professionals and sports fans. For a long time The company's logo was a shamrock and three stripes.

An interesting fact is that no designers were involved in creating the logo. Its concept was proposed by the company's founder, Adi Dassler. For 22 years (until 1994) the trademark remained unchanged. But then new trends in fashion forced the specialists of the famous brand to somewhat rework the world’s favorite shamrock. Now the company's products are decorated with a triangle logo, made in the old traditions. The theme of the three strips was retained.

Since 2008, the company has been producing a separate collection of shoes and clothing, called Adidas original. She combined the fashion of the 80s, as well as the original logo created by Adi Dassler.

Calvin Klein

This brand began its existence back in 1942. Its logo was immediately created. However, it became recognizable only 30 years later, when the designer introduced the line of jeans to the world and placed the logo on the back pocket.

Later, it began to be used not only as a sign of recognition, but also to serve as a navigator through the collection. Dark logo represents clothing top level, gray– permanent clothing lines, white – sportswear.

Logos of famous brands: Brandomania game

If you are interested in the history of company trademarks, then you will probably be interested in new game. Several years ago it appeared in the West, and now it is winning the hearts of gamers in our country. The game "Brandomania" consists of seven levels, they open as you complete the previous ones. For experienced brand lovers, three special levels have been created, over which you will have to rack your brains to achieve good results.

"Brandomania" has a relaxing dynamic. It's best played by multiple people. It is advisable to answer the questions the first time, then you will be able to collect the largest number of prize coins. Of course, the game is designed for those who know at least some logos of famous brands. The game (the answers may not be very simple) involves the possibility of using hints. To do this, you need to click on the “light bulb” icon, and information about a brand unknown to you will open in front of you. And the “bomb” will remove most of the letters, and you will need to guess what word is hidden behind the remaining ones.

The game design is quite simple, the control interface is clear. We must pay tribute to the authors of the game for not only changing the logos beyond recognition, but also maintaining their main features. According to those who have already mastered the first levels, guessing the answers to “Brandomania” is actually interesting.

Every day we see beautiful posters, playbills, posters on television, on billboards, in public transport. We are surrounded by many names, slogans, logos. Some of them are little known, while others are known all over the world. But have you ever wondered how the logos of the most famous companies in the world were created? Where did the bitten apple of Apple come from, why is the Nike swoosh so popular and who invented it, why are the three stripes of Adidas so simple, but at the same time so popular? Today we will tell 7 small stories, each of which will tell about the creation of logos for famous brands. We are sure that this article will be of interest to everyone who is interested in the history of the development of large corporations, because the life of a company begins with the logo.

The close connection between Chupa Chups and Salvador Dali

Salvador Dali is one of the most prominent and famous representatives of the surrealism movement. The artist, sculptor, graphic artist, director and writer made an undeniable contribution to the development modern world. And, it would seem, what does he have to do with the Chupa Chups company? Not many people know that it was Salvador who created the world famous logo for sweet lollipops.

The idea of ​​producing sweet candies on a stick was so interesting and promising that the company’s founders did not spare a tidy sum of money to attract the then famous artist Salvador Dali to create the logo. If you look ahead, you can easily say that the money invested has more than paid off, because the Chupa Chups logo turned out to be interesting, simple, not intrusive and understandable.

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As Dali himself said, work on the logo took no more than an hour - from developing the idea to its final completion. He took the colors of the Spanish flag as a basis, added round shape letters, put it all in a frame, and that’s it. Just like that, within one hour, one of the most famous and recognizable logos in the world appeared.

Carolyn Davidson and the famous Nike swoosh

Surely, every time you see the Nike logo, you ask yourself the question: “How did this swoosh become so popular?” I don’t know about you, but this question constantly arises in my head. After all, a damn simple logo, but at the same time incredibly laconic, clear, and memorable. And the creator Nike logo is Carolyn Davidson. While still a student at Portland State, young Carolyn took part in a competition to design a logo for a new company. Then her “tick” did not cause much enthusiasm among Nike executives. “I don’t really like this logo, but I’m sure it will help us become popular,” said one of the company’s founders.

Very interesting fact, that Carolyn received only $35 for her work. How much do you think this logo is worth now?

Frank Robinson and Coca-Cola

It would seem that such a well-known brand, such a recognizable logo, it was certainly developed by a team professional designers and marketers. Well, how could it be otherwise? Coca-Cola is known all over the world, and their red logo and unique font cannot be confused with anyone else. But in reality everything is much simpler. The logo for Coca-Cola was invented by the company's ordinary accountant Frank Robinson. At that time they did not yet know what the company would be called, and Frank chose the name “Coca-Cola”. I placed this name on a red background and used the standard cursive for that time. It was this “font” that was considered the standard of penmanship and the beauty of calligraphy. This is how the world saw one of the most famous logos of our time. True, time took its toll, and about once every ten years Coca-Cola changed the design of its logo. But those traditions, the red background and the special font, which were laid down in the very first years, have never changed.

Milton Glaser and the world famous "I Love NY" sign

You can often see young people on the streets wearing T-shirts with the inscription “I Love NY”. It is noteworthy that the creation of this inscription led to the emergence of a whole fashion for “love confessions”. Now in every city you can meet people with inscriptions telling how much they love their city. In Moscow you can often see “I LoveMoskov”, in London “I Love UK”. And in other big cities this is not uncommon.

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And it all started with the fact that the young designer Milton Glaser in the mid-70s, on a voluntary basis, completely free of charge, created a simple, but at the same time incredibly popular logo. Thus, he expressed his love for one of the most beautiful cities in the United States, and supported the initiative of city authorities who sought to attract more tourists to New York. Over time, this sketch came to the liking of many townspeople who happily bought T-shirts, caps, jackets, and other things with this inscription.

An interesting fact is that Glazer sketched one of the most famous logos on a piece of paper while riding in a taxi. Now this first prototype of the “I Love NY” logo is kept in the museum contemporary art New York.

The NeXT logo was created in literally 2 weeks

Apple founder Steve Jobs also faced great difficulties in his life. If you don’t know, he was even fired from the company that he founded. But Steve never gave up, and even after leaving Apple he founded another computer hardware company, NeXT. The symbolic name is next. Probably, in this way Jobs wanted to emphasize that he was not stopping and was ready to develop the next company with even greater fervor. But today we are not so much interested in the founding and development of NeXT as in the creation of the company logo.

The famous graphic designer Paul Rand was assigned to develop the logo. He gave Jobs a strict ultimatum: “You pay me $100,000, and I will provide one version of the logo that suits you.” As a result of this collaboration, the world saw the NeXT inscription made in the style of Jobs.

The work was accepted immediately, without any edits. The only thing Steve noticed was the need to highlight the letter “E” in yellow.

It is worth noting that Paul Rand had previously designed logos for IBM (a huge computer corporation), UPS (a worldwide delivery service), and a dozen other medium and small companies.

Rob Yanov and the Rainbow Apple

I am sure that each of you knows what the Apple logo looks like. And everyone knows and has heard about the company’s founder, Steve Jobs. But few people can name the name of the one who created the world-famous logo. We are sure that 9 out of 10 will say that Steve himself invented the bitten apple, but this is absolutely not true. Apple had an original logo that showed Newton sitting under a tree and writing something. Steve didn’t like this option, because from a young age he had gravitated towards simplicity and minimalism. As Jobs said: “Icons should be something you want to lick.” This is exactly what he demanded from Rob Yanov, the designer working on the new Apple logo. The only advice he received from Steve Jobs was: "Don't make it soppy."

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A few weeks later, several options were presented to the court, among which were rainbow apples (bitten and not bitten). Steve chose the option that seemed more original and interesting.

Now Apple products are used by hundreds of millions of people all over the world, and their logo is one of the most famous and recognizable.

The most popular three stripes in the world

Adidas is a company that is a leader in the sportswear market. This is no longer just a brand, it is an entire industry that dictates the style of more than one generation of sports fans. For a very long time, the Adidas logo was a trefoil and three stripes. It is noteworthy that no designers or professionals were involved in creating the logo, and the concept itself was proposed by the company’s founder, Adi Dassler.

For almost 22 years, from 1972 to 1994, the logo remained unchanged. But in the early 90s, dictated by new trends in fashion, the company slightly reworked the “trefoil”, already loved by the whole world. Now the clothes featured an angular logo, which was made in the old traditions, while maintaining the theme of the three stripes. Since 2008, Adidas has been releasing a separate line of clothing and shoes called “Adidas original,” which combines 80s fashion and the original logo created by Adi Dassler.

Mercedes three-pointed star

The Mercedes company was founded in 1926. But the logo that became famous throughout the world appeared decades earlier. Official version states that the Mercedes logo means the trinity - earth, water and air. It was on land (in cars), on water (in boats and yachts), and in the air (in airplanes) that engines produced at Mercedes factories were used. There is also an unofficial version that says that the three-pointed star was first used by the founder of Mercedes-Benz, Gottlieb Daimler. He wrote a letter to his wife, and it was with this symbol, a star with three rays, that he designated the place where their new home would be. Gottlieb's sons slightly modernized their father's star and placed it on the company logo.

Pavel Durov and Vkontakte

And I would like to finish our review with the logo of one of the most popular social networks in the world, VKontakte. It is incredibly simple, concise, and conveys the essence of the company and its purpose. As Pavel himself said, it took no more than 10 minutes to create the logo. He took unobtrusive colors, blue and white, and made the inscription in a standard font. The result is a simple logo that is seen daily by more than 50 million visitors social network"VKontakte". Over time, the logo was further simplified and just the letter “B” was left against the background of the already well-known company colors.

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We could continue this list by adding hundreds of famous logos of the most popular companies in the world. But we tried to select the most interesting brands and unusual stories behind the creation of their logos. We are sure that the article was interesting to you, and now you know how the logos of famous companies appeared.

It often happens that some things are not called by their proper names. A full-fledged photograph is called a “picture”, and the composition is easily renamed “perspective”. I no longer take into account when such concepts as contrast, saturation, brightness are mixed together...

Well, God bless them, with compositions and brightness. I admit that people who are not involved in design or graphics, in general, do not need and are not interested in this. But the trouble is that this category of “uninitiated” includes our dearly beloved customers and, even worse, the so-called “colleagues”.

By and large, ignorance is forgivable for customers. But really, why does the customer need to know what a “modular grid” is and what trajectory your mouse should describe across the mousepad so that, ultimately, you get an attractive and interesting design. The customer also doesn’t care what you call the thing you draw for him - an original layout or something else. He doesn't have to know. He pays you money. And he pays you part of the money precisely for the fact that you know the correct name of this or that thing.

WITH ordinary people(read, customers) everything is clear. But what about those who, due to their profession or responsibilities, are simply obliged to know “who is who” and call everything by its proper name.

Unfortunately, among us (designers) there are people who try to engage in design without knowing basic concepts and replacing the original concepts with their own conjectures. Yes, it’s clear - beginners, it’s clear - they’ve just begun to master the basics of the craft. But, before you sit down with Photoshop and Illustrator, you still need to first sit down with smart books. I just want to exclaim:
Gentlemen “designers”, an urgent request - learn swearing. Part!

Let’s further, together, try to understand “hu is hu” and derive precise definitions for the following concepts, which are so often and often incorrectly used in identity. Today we will break down what it is:
Logo
Sign (Brand mark)
Emblem
Trademark (Trademark, Trademark)
Brand block

As it turned out, the task is not as simple as it might seem at first glance. Initially, I turned to official sources (so that later I would not be accused of replacing original concepts with my own speculation) and began to delve into the legislation. And immediately the first failure - in the patent laws of at least two countries (Russia and Ukraine), there are completely no definitions for some concepts. My next step was to scour encyclopedias and search them for precise definitions of these concepts. And it seems that the second approach to the question turned out to be more successful, but during the search, one nuance emerged that called into question the reliability and “weight” of the data obtained from these same encyclopedias. Namely: in encyclopedias, the concepts of “Brandmark”, “Trademark” and “Trademark” are simply written down under the same definition. And if for the concepts “Trademark” and “Trademark” such identity is very likely, then the concept “Brandmark” falls somewhat out of this series.

After we analyze each of the above concepts in detail and decipher them, it will become clear how “Brandmark” and “Trademark” differ and why, in principle, these two concepts cannot be replaced with each other.

So let's start from the beginning.
Logo

We are used to calling everything that doesn’t fit into a logo. As soon as some graphic element is used in the main symbols of a company (organization, structure, foundation, association - hereinafter referred to as “Company”), everything is a logo. Although this is far from true.

Word "Logo"(eng. Logotype) comes from Greek language: logos (word) and typos (imprint). There are no other options. And, accordingly, there are no variations in decryption:
“Logo is the original graphic design of the name.”

All! No signs, pictograms, symbols - the outline of the name. Whether it’s abbreviated or long, classic typography or exquisite calligraphy – these are all nuances.
All other formulations are from the evil one.

Compaq (Figure 1) is a classic example of a logo that uses an original letterform to emphasize the uniqueness of the logo. The Axeda company logo (Figure 2) also uses the original style, with the addition of a separate graphic element (a parallelogram above the letter “e”). The symbolism of Microsoft Corporation is a textbook example of a logo (Figure 3). The original typeface without the use of “alien” graphic symbols is slightly “diluted” with a graphic element (in the letter pair “os”), which only emphasizes the originality of the logo design. As an example, the Samsung Corporation logo is very interesting (Figure 4). In the logo design, in addition to the original font typeface, a graphic element (oval) is used. Nevertheless, this element is so correctly connected with the text part itself that it is, as it were, its organic continuation.

Sign (Brand mark)

Quite often, for the original graphic identification of a company, one logo is not always enough. Agree that only the graphic design of the name (even in its original design) cannot always convey (convey) the necessary information about the company to the end consumer. It is for these purposes that the sign is used.

In other words, a brand name is an additional graphic identifier of a company, designed to enhance the impact of the logo or convey additional information about the company, which, ultimately, should improve the effect of identifying a given company among its peers.

So it turns out that: a brand mark is a unique graphic element used to identify a company and carrying encoded additional information about the company (advantages, areas of activity, etc.).

So we have come up with a formulation for the concept of “Brandmark”. The only thing is that it turned out to be quite long and indigestible, so let’s try to unify it and shorten it a little:
“A brand mark is a unique identification graphic element.”.

As a rule, a brand name is used together with a logo, but this is not a dogma, and in some cases, when it is appropriate and justified, it can be used as an independent element of identification. A striking example of this is the Nike brand name.

The world famous Nike slash is a classic example of a brand name (Figure 5). The synonyms for the sign are “dynamism” and “activity”, which directly reflects the sporting direction of the company. The nVidia trademark (Figure 6) is a stylistic image of an eye, which also deciphers the company’s main area of ​​activity - the production of graphics chipsets. Very interesting example represents the logo of General Electric Corporation (Figure 7). The main element of the sign is the abbreviation of the name of the corporation, two capital letters “G” and “E”. The sign is made in an elegant style, which emphasizes “eliteness” and “uniqueness”. With the decoding of the Mitsubishi corporation logo (Figure 8), everything is simple and logical. Translated from Japanese, Mitsu (three) and Bishi (diamond). Which, in fact, is clearly reflected in the company’s logo - three diamonds.

It's also worth mentioning abbreviations. Often, both a logo and a sign can either consist of an abbreviation or contain an abbreviation. But at the same time, the abbreviation is not an independent element of graphic identification.

Figures 9-10 show examples of the use of abbreviations in the logos of the computer corporation IBM (International Business Machines) and the media holding CNN (Cable News Network). Actually, the logos themselves consist of abbreviations. Figures 11 and 12 show the brand names of Premier Magnetics and Baltic Line Advertising, which are made in the form of abbreviations.

And a few more nuances that are not dogma, but which you should know about the logo and brand name:
In the “Logo + Brand Name” combination, the logo is usually primary. The logo can be used without a brand name. The brand name can also be used separately from the logo. But, in most cases, a logo and a sign are parts of one whole.
The Logo and Brand Mark are separate, independent elements. Sometimes there are variants of symbolism where the sign is “hardwired” into the logo, but, as a rule, these are not the most best samples logo and sign structures. Such “logo signs” often do not fully work for their owners.
A distinctive feature of both the logo and the brand name is originality. They should be as different as possible from the symbols of other companies (at least from the symbols of direct competitors).
Also, in most cases, the synonym “simplicity” is applicable to the logo and sign. A good logo (sign) is a graphically simple symbol that should be easy to read, remember, and reproduce.
Simplicity is desirable in color solutions. How fewer flowers- so much the better. Minimum quantity colors in symbolism simplifies its reproduction and increases memorability. There is no reason to do multi-color or full-color symbolism unless it is ideologically, logically, or conceptually justifiable.

Emblem

The word “Emblem” comes from the Greek language: emblema (relief decoration). The definition goes like this:
“An emblem is a conventional or symbolic image of a concept or idea.”

Everything seems clear, but in reality nothing is clear. The definition is so vague and generalized that it is impossible to draw a clear conclusion from it about what the emblem should be. Let's try to figure this out together.

We can draw the first conclusion from the decoding of the concept itself: an emblem is a relief decoration.

The second point is that the definition does not express clear restrictions on the graphic appearance of the emblem. From this we conclude that the emblem can contain a variety of graphic identification elements. Sometimes, even very complex and rich in details.

And the third point - from the same definition we come to the conclusion that the emblem is used to designate global “concepts” or “ideas”, and not for “graphic outline of the name” (as in the case of a logo), and not in the form of a “unique graphic element ” (as in the case of a brand name).

Typically, emblems are used to identify military branches, football and hockey clubs, schools, universities, etc...

An example of the emblem of one Tunisian football team (Figure 13). Emblem of the Ukrainian football club “Dynamo Kyiv” (Figure 14). Emblem of the “Imperial Security Office” (Figure 15). An example of a college logo (Figure 16).

In light of all of the above, one interesting observation emerged. Figure 17a shows the logo of the Ford automobile concern. On the right, in Figure 17b, is the same logo, but with the implementation of the volume of some elements of the logo. Logically, it turns out that on the left we see a classic logo that meets all the requirements of this concept, and on the right we have an emblem, which, however, does not cease to be the original logo.

All three concepts mean the same thing, so for convenience we will operate with only one of them, namely the Trademark.

Everything is simple here - in patent legislation there is a clear designation of the Trademark:
« Trademark- a designation capable of distinguishing, respectively, goods and services of the same legal or individuals, from similar goods and services of other legal entities or individuals.”

“Law on Trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin” ( Russian Federation). The same definition, formulated slightly differently, is found in Ukrainian legislation.

In fact, the Trademark has no restrictions on graphic style, typography, richness of graphic elements, color scheme, etc.

Both an emblem (logo, brand name) and other graphic symbols that do not fall within the definitions of the above identification elements can be used as a Trademark.

It makes no sense to give examples of Trademarks - go to any supermarket and you will be able to see them on the shelves, in huge quantities.
Brand block

We have already sorted out the main elements of identification; all that remains is to complete the picture. So - a branded block. It's simple here:
“Brand block is the original location of the logo and brand name relative to each other.”

There is nothing more to say here. Figures 18 and 19 show examples of the horizontal and vertical arrangement of elements in a branded block. Naturally, there are an innumerable number of location options - here are two of the most common ones.

Atelier - horizontal placement of elements of a brand block, relative to each other. Backplane - vertical placement of elements.

So we figured out the main elements of identity. Of course, this essay cannot be considered flawless and complete, but I did not try to delve into all the nuances, trying to derive only the fundamental principles for the formation of identity elements.

Also, beyond the field of our gaze there were others, no less important elements visual identification, but we will talk about them some other time...

Each famous brand has a personal logo that is memorable at first sight. A team of specialists and creative designers usually works on the development of brand marks, but there are cases when a brand announced a competition for the best work and accepted sketches from novice designers and ordinary consumers.

The creation of a clothing brand label is usually based on the name of the brand, or a certain image that carries an informational message.

Logos of famous clothing brands

At the moment, all global clothing brands have their own logos. But the most recognizable logos of fashion clothing brands have the following brands:

1. Gucci. The brand logo was invented by the eldest son of the brand's founder, Guccio Gucci. The sign depicts two intertwined capital letters G. These letters symbolize not only the designer's name, but also a stylized image of a stirrup, since at the beginning of Gucci's career he sold accessories for equestrian sports.
2. Hermes. The logo depicts a horse and carriage. This is due to the fact that initially the company was engaged in the manufacture of harness for horses. Subsequently, a style from Hermes appeared - processing things with a “saddle seam”.
3. . The famous American brand depicted two horses trying to tear jeans on its logo. In addition, the signature feature of Levis jeans is the red thread on the outer side seam.
4. Louis Vuitton. The brand uses the LV monogram, which comes in different colors. This brand has made its logo not just a brand name, but also the main decoration of its products.
5. Lancome. The world famous drawing of a cute cat called Hello Kitty added by designer Yuko Shimizu. It is noteworthy that he did not receive any compensation for this idea, as he left the company early.

It is impossible to provide a complete list of clothing brand logos, since each well-known brand necessarily has one logo. The logos of the world's Chanel (two crossed horseshoes), Givenchy (the printed letter G located in a square), Versace (the head of the fatal Gorgon Medusa), etc. have also become known.