By now you’ve probably seen the reported $3.7 million rebrand of Walmart. The “updated brand identity” was hotly debated in marketing circles when it was announced several weeks back; raising many questions about whether the brand update was even an update, and whether it was the right time for a discount retailer to make such a change.
Walmart Chief Marketing Officer William White noted the history of the logo, and the company’s enduring commitment to serving its customers “however they need us.”
Walmart ultimately decided on a thicker font, deeper blue, and a bigger emphasis on its so-called “spark,” which will be used as an icon going forward - all of which demonstrate a trend change in logos, which had leaned into thinner, lighter fonts over the last decade.
Jared Wolf, executive creative director at Supernova Group, a tech innovation firm, said the subtle design changes make a “huge difference,” in his LinkedIn post.
“The easy take is to poke fun at the rebrand and say it was a waste of money,” he wrote. “But they really are two different brand identities. The old logo (left) evokes enterprise and the new logo (right) feels fresh and customer friendly.”
Personally, I disagree, but like I said, there were a lot of opinions around this refresh!
George Arabian, CEO at Toronto’s NVISION, dropped this sarcasm-laced opinion online.
“After what must’ve been weeks of deep strategy sessions, intense brainstorming, and very important coffee fuelled debates, the result?
The logo just… hit the gym and gained a few pounds or crushed some McDonald’s inside their stores.
Some agency definitely cashed in hard for making things a little ‘heavier.’
Design update or a masterclass in minimal effort, maximum invoice? You decide.
Proof that sometimes in branding, you don’t need a full reimagining, just a little extra weight to carry those extra zeroes on your invoice. 🤘🏻”
Of course, the competitors got in on the action too!
Thomas Thompson, chief economist at Havas Edge and entrepreneur in residence at Harvard, declared “a complete reinvention potentially risky as it could dilute decades of brand recognition,” on LinkedIn. He also noted the incredibly high costs of changing signage, packaging, and digital platforms across such a large company.
Both are reasonable concerns when deciding between a rebrand and a refresh.
Kari Brown, founder and CEO at ABH Connect, a marketing firm in Tennessee, hilariously called the rebrand a “360 reimagining of what’s happening at Walmart,” but also made the very important point: improving your brand is not just about font weights and colours. Specifically, she talked about the importance of using a rebrand to improve every customer experience.
A Total Overhaul
Another recent-ish example of a rebrand that got a lot of backlash was the 2021 Kia rebrand, which reportedly confused drivers so much they were Googling the wrong car!
The rebrand did away with the 3D text in favour of a flat, sawtooth design, which was … hard to read.
Kia took the risk and stuck to its guns and surprisingly, sales went through the roof!
Airbnb is another example of a logo that got a lot of flack when they redesigned, with a BBC article reporting that designers and the general public alike were comparing it to certain … body parts!
Of course, the design had its defenders too. And we all know Airbnb - while facing public customer complaints and regulatory issues in certain areas - isn’t exactly suffering financially. Even if it was, I don’t think any of the issues Airbnb are facing have anything to do with this rebrand!
So there are absolutely some key takeaways from all this debate - do you risk your familiarity when changing a well-known and accepted brand to something new and exciting? Is the refresh or rebrand going to touch on all aspects of your business or just the signage outside? And speaking of signage, and packaging, and social media, and digital ads, and so much more - are you ready to invest in their updates as well?
Choose Your Adventure!
Whether you’re defending these logo updates, or don’t really care about them, as a business owner you have to recognize that beauty is in the eye of the customer - and your brand should really represent who your company is, to bring in the customers you want. Are you ready for an update? Or maybe just a little zhuzh? Get in touch! We’ll take you through the pros and cons for a lot less than $3.7 million!
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