2019 Year of the Re-naissance.

As we finish the year as well as the decade, we can safely say that we saw more brands re-polish and re-purpose their identities to serve their purpose as well become better assets for future uses. 

Brands like Volkswagen decided to re-tweak their logo by moving towards an electrified era. The majority of brands who decided to not only re-examine their identities for better digital as well as future uses, did so by creating new visual and design systems that gave them tools boxes of design assets for future simplified adaptations without compromising the original logos. From Warner Bros, Master Card, Reebok, PBS Warner Media, and BMW, these brands kept or even went back to what truly worked for them, yet took advantage of the opportunity to improve and strengthen their identity designs. Brands like Dunkin Donuts and McDonalds removed all the excess graphics effects and descriptions and solidified their brand foundations in who and what they really are. Brands like Frito-Lay’s ad for Doritos targets young consumers, leaving out any mention of its product using their iconic assets as an advertising and marketing tool with their logo free ads campaign by asking their fans to define who they are. 

In 2011 Starbucks did go through a major logo evolution, but in 2019 it decided to releases an entirely new toolbox of refreshed creative seasonal expressions in the form of on-line assets that could be easily used or referenced. Turner Duckworth’s work for McDonalds expanded the definition of Golden Arches into endless possibilities and visual systems showing the width and breadth of graphic and typography expressions. 

Correos, Spain’s National Postal Service rebrand was also a great example of embracing the future by maintaining the original symbolic asset of the crown and redefining its core elements and assets. 

City of Paris rebrand by Carre Noir gave new life by breathing fresh air and elevated elegance to the ancient naval emblem. The beautiful city and municipality of Oslo launched a comprehensive identity system that unified and clarified its businesses under one symbol, yet opened up the opportunity to create a set of abstract flexible design system for communication purposes to the general public. Saffron agencies transformation for the city of Vienna, reinforced their emblematic shield with new typography and brand architecture that streamlined their communication as well as key visual touch points and communication deliverables. 

Airlines like United and Lufthansa in 2018 gave new wings as well as a fresh paint to their fleets of design assets by focusing on strong presence in bold colors and better focus on their core assets. 

Not all rebranding efforts hit the target nor seemed to garner praise. Staples, Sheraton and Kroger seemed to make lackluster attempts to freshen up their image as well as visual identities, but fell short in both logo styles as well as improvements on their existing branding. Even when they tried to make minor changes they did not seem to really fix the bigger issues in consistency or design aesthetics. 

                  Online platforms like Slack and Twitch by Pentagram and Collins rebranded with more of playful and content driven strategy that placed more importance on dynamic design assets that serve the UX/UI purposes rather than static one dimensional implementations. They did not offer one solution for the logo assets, but more multi platform extensions and graphic tools that remained adaptable and more flexible without the constraints of print or strict guidelines. Yahoo refresh went towards more of a reminder of who they are and what they represented by a focused and crisp approach on bold typography strength and amplification of presence. Michael Bierut’s team at Pentagram, did what they do best, and made sure that supergraphics played an important role in redefining the role of Yahoo as a utility brand.

                  When we look back at 2019 and towards 2020, we see that rebranding and design in general will be bolder and more value based designs systems that will provide more than one design solution for multi-platform applications. Customized visual identity kits that expand the brand with more flexibility and function that can be adapted to a variety of offerings and environments will become more the centerpieces of design development. Graphic elements with multiple combinations and encompassing illustrative styles to serve the purpose of telling a bigger story than just the logo, will take a bigger lead. Branding with emotional connections recreating and generating feelings with consumers will define the success of new brands as well as rebrands. Brands with a bigger sense of purpose to make consumers lives easier will have a bigger voice than those who are looking for quick solutions with no real longevity or shelf life. Legacy brands that have spent decades developing and nurturing their brands will use their iconic assets as bigger tools to re-establish their characters as well as strengthen their core missions.