A B-Side BY Armin

Mercado Libre

About: (Est. 1999) “MercadoLibre.com (literally “free market” in Spanish) or MercadoLivre in Portuguese (Brazil, Portugal) is a website dedicated to e-commerce and online auctions. It is eBay’s Latin American partner. MercadoLibre is Latin America’s number-one e-commerce site. It is currently present in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Ecuador, Peru, Portugal, Panama, Uruguay and Venezuela.” (Source: Wikipedia)

Design by: Imaginity.

Ed.’s Notes: No es bueno. Exposed grid and step-by-step devolution of Helvetica below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Imaginity case study. News story about their $10-million media buy.

Select quote: “We have refreshed and modernize the identity whilst retaining the inherent equity held in the current look and feel. We took some of the current brand elements to reflect the heritage and also support the brand for the next phase of the company’s growth. You will still see the iconic handshake but the typography and colours have been updated.”

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A B-Side BY Armin

Fusion (TV)

About: (Est. 2013) A new TV channel by ABC News and Univision News, “Fusion capitalizes on Univision’s news leadership and expertise in reaching U.S. Hispanics and ABC’s global news leadership to serve over 50 million Hispanics, the youngest and fastest-growing demographic in the U.S. Currently, Hispanics represent 16 percent of the total population in the United States, a number that is projected to double to 30 percent by 2050. Hispanics wield considerable spending power of over $1.2 trillion and have an increasing impact on social, economic and political trends.”

Design by: Logo: Caspar Nonner through Buster

Ed.’s Notes: Univision continues its streak of commissioning (and approving) unintelligible logos and watered-down versions of the parent brand wordmark. Bigger view of the logo below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: ABC press release.

Select quote: “‘The logo is a powerful representation of Fusion’s identity. Our brand will reflect the attitude of millennials — shaped by a sense of unity with a voice that’s fun, fresh and even irreverent,’ said Beau Ferrari, interim President for Fusion and Executive Vice President of Operations for Univision Networks. […] ‘This shape is bold, evolving and engaging. It is an iconic stamp that will be instantly recognizable,’ added Michael Berkman, VP and Creative Director, Fusion.”

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Opinion BY Armin

Hand Beats Filter in New Instagram Wordmark

Established in 2010 and hundreds of millions of photographs ago, Instagram is a “fun and quirky way to share your life with friends through a series of pictures”. Obviously, that’s an understatement. For its 100 million users, Instagram is as much part of life as texting and e-mailing and Facebook (who we all know paid a cool billion dollars to acquire Instagram in April of 2012 — who’s laughing now?) and its filters have established a new lingua franca for documenting food, clouds, and POV of places you are not in. Point being: Instagram is big. And important. Small changes are big changes. And its latest update, version 3.5, brought along with it a redesigned wordmark crafted by Denver, CO-based Mackey Saturday.

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Friday Likes BY Armin

Friday Likes 43

Today we go full on Nordic with firms and clients from Denmark and Norway and an aesthetic that you just can’t get either on this side of the pond or even in other parts of that side of the pond. What I’m trying to say: They got serious design skills up there.

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A B-Side BY Armin

SF72

About: (Est. 2013) Formed by the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management in partnership with the people of San Francisco, SF72 is San Francisco’s gathering place for emergency preparedness. “If we can be prepared for the first 72 hours after a disaster, we will be ready for an emergency, no matter what form it takes. 72 hours might seem like a lot, but that’s really only nine meals. It’s just a long weekend. If disaster strikes, SF72.org will go into emergency mode-you can access live updates and tweets from around the city, check for missing persons, and learn about how you can help.”

Design by: IDEO.

Ed.’s Notes: Very nice wordmark, quirky and different (perhaps not enough emergency-ish and too friendly) and the shorthand version that reduces into a heart is clever. Video that explains this new initiative below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: N/A.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Dexim

About: “Dexim is a worldwide registered brand manufacturing an extensive line of accessories and applications compatible with popular consumer electronics, including iPhone, iPod, and iPad. Currently selling in over 45 countries, their mission is to provide consumers with products that offer an enjoyable, personalized, and superior experience. Because their corporate image looked so dated, consumers perceived Dexim to be much of the same, and the brand experienced a loss of relevancy and consumer interest in the US. Competing at a higher level required a brand identity redesign to make a statement and better align with their mission and values.”

Design by: Motto.

Ed.’s Notes: Decent. Definitely far better than the original, if a little too envisioning-the-future-in-the-1990s-typography. Plenty of applications below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: N/A.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Vikings (TV Series)

About: “The HISTORY original series Vikings transports us to the brutal and mysterious world of Ragnar Lothbrok (Travis Fimmel), a Viking warrior and farmer who yearns to explore—and raid—the distant shores across the ocean. His ambition puts him at odds with local chieftain Earl Haraldson (Gabriel Byrne), who insists on sending his raiders to the impoverished east rather than the uncharted west. [&hellip] Vikings was created and written by Michael Hirst (Elizabeth, The Tudors).”

Design by: King and Country.

Ed.’s Notes: Really digging this. Plenty more below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Bedow case study.

Provided quote:“The left side of the ‘V’ tells us about the lesser-known aspect of Vikings: family and life. It seamlessly blends three key elements of their character: the upper section is efficient and almost scientific, denoting how technologically advanced they were, especially in ship-building expertise; the middle section is a graphic representation of brotherhood and unbreakable bonds, featuring art reminiscent of tribal emblems; the lower section is about growth and life, with an illustration that is similar to a section of weaving tapestry, taking visual cues from a family crest or coat of arms. The right side of the ‘V’ tells the story of war — and the violence, death and conflict that were big parts of Viking society. Shaped like the blade of a sword, small chinks are hacked out of what would have been fastidiously hand-forged steel weaponry, stained from blood of the fallen.”

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Opinion BY Armin

Flexible Harsh is the New Sexy Ugly

Sticking with a theme early this week, today we are featuring another flexible and (not self- but still) generative identity. Although the company for which it is for does not meet the criteria for the kind of company that typically makes it unto Brand New, I’m always interested in showing approaches to identity that break out from those regularly featured here. Established in 2002, Fluidity is a Los Angeles, CA-based design consultancy that specializes in architectural and landscape integrations of water: fountains, pools, waterfalls, and more. A new, fluid — yeah, I know, I know, easy pun — identity has been designed by Chicago, IL-based thirst.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Egon Zehnder

About: (Est. 1964) Egon Zehnder is a leading privately owned executive search and management consulting firm with over 420 consultants in 66 offices across 40 offices globally. Founded in 1964, Egon Zehnder consultants work as trusted advisors to the world’s foremost executives and organizations in solving their most complex leadership problems.”

Design by: Lippincott.

Ed.’s Notes: Nice typography and simple alteration to the “g” to create an ownable wordmark. Bigger view of the logo below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Lippincott case study.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Belize

About: Client is Belize Tourism Board. “Belize is a country located on the north eastern coast of Central America. It is the only country in the area where English is the official language, although Kriol and Spanish are more commonly spoken. Belize is bordered to the north by Mexico, to the south and west by Guatemala and to the east by the Caribbean Sea. Its mainland is about 290 kilometres (180 mi) long and 110 kilometres (68 mi) wide.” (Source: Wikipedia)

Design by: Olson.

Ed.’s Notes: Video on the making of the logo and bigger view below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Olson project page.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Ipro

About: (Est. 1989) “Ipro is a global leader in the development of advanced software solutions used by legal professionals to streamline the discovery process. Ipro’s worldwide network of corporations, law firms, government agencies, and legal service providers rely on Ipro’s Enterprise platform to organize, review, process, and produce litigation data of vast sizes and complexity levels more efficiently and cost-effectively than ever before.”

Design by: N/A.

Ed.’s Notes: Posted mainly because we need a front-runner to Worst B-Side of the year. We could also award the “before” logo an honorary Worst Of.

Relevant links: Press release.

Select quote: “Ipro’s former logo, a blue diamond signifying the company’s longstanding history, will be replaced on all collateral moving forward with a fresher, more colorful image. The three distinct colors and shapes coming together into one spherical design represent not only the integration of Ipro’s three flagship products but the synergy that must exist between the three primary verticals of the electronic discovery: the law firm, the corporation, and the legal service provider.”

Thanks to James I. Bowie for the tip.

Opinion BY Armin

MEO Phone Home

Launched in 2007 by Portugal Telecom, the largest telecommunications service provider in Portugal, MEO is a “triple-play” service provider that offers TV, internet, landline, and mobile phone. This month MEO introduced a new logo designed by Lisboa-based MyBrand (who also designed their previous logo) and tagline, “É Outra Vida” (Another Life).

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A B-Side BY Armin

Rexall

About: (Est. 1904, Canada) “Katz Group Canada Ltd. is a leading drugstore operator with a dynamic history of innovation and growth. Our flagship chain, Rexall, is among the most trusted names in pharmacy with a heritage of serving the health care needs of the community through patient and medication services and quality health products since 1904. Katz Group Canada Ltd. is proudly Canadian owned and operated with more than 400 convenient Rexall and Rexall Pharma Plus locations across Central and Western Canada and more than 8,500 employees.”

Design by: N/A.

Ed.’s Notes: No press release and no change on their site yet, but their store in the renovated First Canadian Place in Toronto shows the new logo (below or after the jump).

Relevant links: N/A.

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Opinion BY Armin

SSG: Health- and Design-Conscious

Established this year in the Chungdam neighborhood of Seoul, South Korea, SSG Food Market is a health-conscious food establishment that sells domestic and seasonal fresh food, traditional native food and eco-friendly products, health products with no chemical additives, and more. SSG’s identity, packaging, and environment have been designed by New York, NY-based Mucca.

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A B-Side BY Armin

The Rockettes

About: (Est. 1925) “The Radio City Rockettes are the world’s most famous precision dance company. The Rockettes are the stars of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular - a show that is seen by more than 2 million people a year and has played in more than 60 cities across the country.”

Design by: N/A.

Ed.’s Notes: Decent idea (synchronized “R”s as if they were the high-kicking ladies) but pretty bad execution.

Relevant links: N/A

Thanks to Michele Byrne for the tip.

Opinion BY Armin

Follow-up: Long John Silver’s

From my introduction in February 2011, when this logo last changed: “First opened in 1969 in Louisville, KY, Long John Silver’s (LJS) is a QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) seafood chain with over 1,100 locations worldwide, but mostly in the U.S. Privately owned until 1998, LJS is currently part of Yum! Brands, who also own KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut.” What has changed since then is that LJS Partners LLC purchased the chain from Yum! Brands earlier this year. And back in September LJS introduced a new logo, more familiar with that they had originally, as well as a new tagline, “That’s What I Like”, that replaces “We Speak Fish”. No press release or design credit given.

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Opinion BY Armin

Optimum has the Last Word

Owned by Cablevision, Optimum offers cable, Internet, and voice service throughout the New York and New Jersey area, with another area of service throughout Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and Utah. Optimum has had a case of logo-itis, with far too many logos (see one of the first images below) mostly due because they separated their offerings as Optimum Online, Optimum Interactive, Optimum Voice, plus the main Optimum logo. Last week Optimum introduced a new logo designed by New York, NY-based COLLINS:, and new advertising by Mother NY.

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Opinion BY Armin

Boom goes the Sans

Established in 1800, the Rijksmuseum (State Museum in English) in Amsterdam is home to more than 900,000 items in its collection, including a large amount of masterpieces from the Dutch Golden Age from artists like Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Hals. Housed in an 1827 building, the Rijksmuseum has been under renovation since 2003 and next year will see its reopening with a design by Spanish architects Cruz y Ortiz. Yesterday, Rijksmuseum introduced their new logo and identity, designed by Irma Boom with custom lettering by Paul van der Laan of Bold Monday, replacing the 32-year-old logo designed by Studio Dumbar.

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Opinion BY Armin

Senac’s Paper Airplane Goes Down in Flames

Established in 1946, Senac — originally SENAC, short for Serviço Nacional de Aprendizagem Comercial; National Commercial Training Service in English — is a vocational trade education institution in Brazil where it has presence all over the country with over 580 locations. It employs over 23,000 faculty members that teach more than 54,000 combined classes to 1,150,000 students a year. In other words: it’s big. Earlier this month, Senac introduced a new logo, designed by Rio de Janeiro-based Packaging Brands, and a new advertising campaign by Ogilvy.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Campaign Monitor

Launched in 2004, Campaign Monitor is an e-mail marketing service that allows users to send lovely designed newsletters and provides thorough results and data on each campaign sent. Last month, Campaign Monitor introduced a new look with a new logo that combined a custom wordmark by Minneapolis, MN-based Anthony Lane and a new icon by the in-house design team. Buzz, a member of the team writes in this post: “Some people see it as an envelope, others the letter ‘M’, a graph, crown, folded paper… or something else entirely.”

Thanks to Zac Davies for the tip.