When a business looks for a graphic design agency for a rebrand, it may be a radical new look that they’re looking for to go with a change of tactic in their marketplace; even for a change of name. However, sometimes, a rebrand can just be about honing a brand and perfecting it for the state of the current world.
For a great example of this, just look to Ikea, who recently underwent a logo rebrand, according to Dezeen. We’ll say according to Dezeen, because to have noticed this logo change yourself would likely take a passionate advocate of either the Swedish furniture icons or graphic design itself.
The Ikea logo hadn’t had a redesign since 1983, but even then not changing much from its incarnation in the 1960s, and it’s block, blue and yellow oval and text certainly makes it an iconic design – one that almost monopolises this colour combination’s design currency. However, the design agency was briefed with a redesign to increase the logo’s readability in both its digital and physical incarnations.
Not only that, but the re-design had to both not require a re-registration of the trademark, but also be similar enough to the existing logo that they would sit happily side by side while the changed was rolled out across the online presence, store signage and packaging.
Okay, time to get technical – what has actually changed about the logo? Graphics website Brand New has some great comparison sketches on the actual changes, which are well worth a look. One of the most noticeable changes is the move of the trademark symbol, which was once outside of the box entirely, into the yellow oval. A simple way to streamline the logo, you’d have to question it’s original placement entirely.
In terms of the changes to the font, let’s get it directly from the designers at Seventy Agency, who masterminded the rebrand: “By changing the proportions of the box and oval, we increased the letter size by 15%. Creating a bigger brand presence within the same amount of media space. By refining and redrawing the letters, e.g. reducing the flares, the new IKEA logo is now optimised for both digital formats and small print formats.”
The redrawing of the letters also saw the serif of the font, which was already quite subtle, refined even more to a barely-there flick. The counter space of the E and A has also been increased out of proportion with the other letters. Overall, the increases in size were to help the font feel less ‘stretched’.
The blue and yellow have also been redefined and optically enhanced, making them easier to reproduce faithfully across platforms, and also helping them to work as standalone colours also.
While this rebrand has made great steps in evolving the logo to have better graphic qualities and future-proof it for different platforms, many would still be hard-pushed to say that this logo was one of the most innovative or well-designed on the planet, something that still sits at odds with Ikea’s brand philosophy.