by Natalia Raben
Perhaps you have noticed the recent graphic design trend in the fashion world. More and more brands choose to redesign their logos into more minimalistic ones. As a result, the general audience often finds them looking… sort of the same. Or at least very similar. However, is that really the case? Let’s look closer at some of the fashion houses that are considered to lack creativity when it comes to their rebranding or even assumed to be copying the designs of their competitors.
The monograms
Chanel and Gucci are two luxury brands that run using famous minimalistic monograms. Each includes round shapes formed by the initials of the founders’ names – Coco Chanel and Guccio Gucci. There are speculations as to whether CC is actually from Coco or perhaps a shape from a stained glass of a monastery orphanage in Aubazine where Chanel grew up. Nevertheless, no matter what the origin is, the perception of the audience stays the same: both logos use symmetrically arranged, round letter. When shows apart, some people easily confuse Chanel with Gucci. However, once the two are presented side by side, suddenly the differences are big enough to tell them apart.
The fonts
In the fashion industry not only the monograms become similar but so do the logos featuring the brands’ names. In the past years, many fashion houses adjusted their typography into a more modern one. Think about brands like Saint Laurent Paris, Balenciaga, Burberry, Berluti or Balmain. All of them share the same characteristics. The brand name is in a black color, the logo uses uppercase typography and the font applied is sans-serif. The trend is so strong that, in the coming years, more fashion designers are expected to implement similar changes, no matter how well established, famous or luxury their brand is.
The logo trends reasons
Most likely, each one of us thinks: “Why?”. For many of these brands, the old logos stood for heritage and traditional values. Why would Burberry want to adjust their branding when the previous one worked so well? The reasons are multiple. First of all, fashion houses set or follow trends. Since the industry presents a new logo trend, in order to stay relevant and on track, brands follow it. Secondly, simplified typography, such as the sans-serif fonts, give better legibility on small apparel. Moreover, it fits all items and products. A simple and contemporary-looking logo can be sewed into all sort of clothing or accessories. As the co-founder of a graphic design company UnderConsideration, Armin Vit, said: it is like wearing a black-tie tuxedo—classically stylish, but muted enough such that it doesn’t steal the show.
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Natalia Raben takes care of marketing at DesignBro. Lover of design, photography and the arts.
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