Logo changes always spark a weird kind of internet rage. You know the feeling. You wake up, tap on your favorite app, and the icon looks... wrong. It’s too flat. Or it’s a weird gradient. Or the font you’ve looked at for twenty years is suddenly gone.
People hate change. We’re wired that way. But for a multi-billion dollar company, a logo isn’t just a pretty picture. It’s an asset. And sometimes, that asset gets dusty.
The Great Flattening and Why It’s Finally Ending
For the last decade, every brand on earth seemed to be in a race to see who could be the most boring. We call it "blanding." Everyone ditched their unique quirks for clean, sans-serif fonts and flat 2D shapes.
Why? Because of your phone screen.
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Back in the day, logos lived on billboards and letterheads. They could be intricate. But when you’re trying to fit a brand into a tiny 120-pixel square on a smartphone, detail is the enemy. It becomes a blurry mess.
Burberry and the Return of the Serif
Burberry became the poster child for this "blanding" trend back in 2018 when they swapped their classic knight for a chunky, blocky font. It looked like every other luxury brand. But in 2023, they did something radical: they went back.
Under creative director Daniel Lee, they brought back the Equestrian Knight and a thin, elegant serif font. It felt human again. It had "soul." This signaled a massive shift in the old logos vs new debate. Brands are starting to realize that if everyone looks the same, nobody stands out.
Honestly, it was a relief.
When Minimalism Goes Too Far: The Nokia Case
Nokia’s 2023 rebrand is a fascinating mess of strategy and nostalgia. For 45 years, we knew that heavy, blue block lettering. It screamed "indestructible phone that lasts a week."
But Nokia doesn't really make phones anymore—at least not the part of the company that owns the brand. They do B2B tech and 5G networking. To show they weren't just a "phone company" from the 90s, they chopped the letters up. The 'N' looks like a chevron. The 'K' is a floating angle.
It’s futuristic. It’s digital. It also makes some people's brains hurt because you have to "complete" the letters yourself. It’s the ultimate example of a new logo trying to kill an old identity to survive.
The Nostalgia Loop: Why Pepsi and 7UP Are Going Retro
If you look at the new Pepsi logo (released for their 125th anniversary), it looks suspiciously like the one from the 70s. That’s not an accident.
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Mauro Porcini, PepsiCo’s Chief Design Officer, noted something interesting: when you ask people to draw the Pepsi logo from memory, they don't draw the "smile" logo they used for the last 15 years. They draw the one with the word "Pepsi" inside the globe.
So, they just... did that.
Why the 90s are Winning
- 7UP went for neon greens and 3D shadows.
- Burger King ditched the shiny plastic look for a flat, 70s-inspired bun.
- Instagram (way back in 2016) took a massive hit for losing the "retro camera" but eventually won people over with that sunset gradient.
New logos are increasingly just "remastered" versions of old ones. It’s like a band playing their greatest hits with better speakers. We want the comfort of the past but the crispness of a 4K display.
The Risky Move: Johnson & Johnson’s Identity Crisis
In late 2023, Johnson & Johnson did the unthinkable. They killed the cursive script.
That script was based on the co-founder’s actual signature from the 1880s. It was one of the longest-running logos in history. Now? It’s a clean, red, sans-serif font.
The reason makes sense on paper. Kids aren't taught cursive in school anymore. To a Gen Z consumer, that iconic signature might just look like red squiggles. Plus, J&J split their company. The "band-aid and baby powder" side is now called Kenvue. The J&J name is now for high-tech medical gear and pharma.
Professional? Yes. Trustworthy? Maybe. But man, it feels cold compared to the old one.
How to Tell if a Logo Change is Actually Good
Designers love to talk about "visual language" and "brand equity," but for most of us, it’s simpler.
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A good rebrand solves a problem. If a logo is too complicated to print on a t-shirt, it needs to change. If a company used to sell oil but now sells solar panels, it needs to change.
But if a brand changes just because a new CEO wants to "leave a mark"? That’s usually when we get the "Gap logo" disaster of 2010 (which lasted exactly six days before they switched back).
Practical Takeaways for Your Own Brand
If you're thinking about your own visual identity, don't just follow the "flat" trend. Think about these three things:
- Legibility is King. If people can't read it on a dark screen at 2 AM, it's a fail.
- Nostalgia is a Tool. Don't throw away what people already love. Sometimes the "old" version is the "best" version.
- The "Memory Test." Can a five-year-old draw your logo from memory? If not, it’s probably too busy.
The battle of old logos vs new isn't about which one looks better in a frame. It's about which one survives the transition from a physical world to a digital one without losing its heart.
Next time you see a redesign, don't just look at the font. Look at the "why." Usually, there's a billion-dollar reason hidden in those pixels.
Next Steps for Brand Owners
Audit your current visuals by shrinking your logo down to the size of a postage stamp on your phone. If it disappears or becomes a blob, you're likely due for a "modernization" that prioritizes weight and contrast over intricate detail. Look at your competitors—if they’ve all gone "minimalist," there might be a massive opening for you to embrace a more illustrative, "maximalist" style that catches the eye in a crowded social media feed.