Opinion BY Armin

Brandiose is Grandiose

Established in 2000 as Plan B Branding by life-long friends Jason Klein and Casey White, Brandiose, as the new company has been named, is a branding firm focused on designing official logos and uniforms for Minor League Baseball teams with awesome names like the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs and the Richmond Flying Squirrels. Having been called to the Majors, they also revitalized the Cincinnati Reds logos and uniforms. With the new name comes a new identity with lettering by Ken Barber.

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Opinion BY Armin

I Tawt I Taw a Panther Tat

Joining the NFL as an expansion team in 1995, the Carolina Panthers have a total record of 131 wins and 150 losses and have even made it to the Super Bowl (XXXVIII in Houston) in which they lost to the New England Patriots. Over the weekend, which happened to be Pro Bowl weekend, the Panthers introduced a new logo designed by the NFL’s creative department.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Baltimore Orioles

Based in Baltimore since 1954, the Orioles are an American League baseball team in Major League Baseball. Chris Creamer reports on the new uniforms for the 2012 season and the return (and evolution) of the cartoon oriole to replace the more realistic oriole as the insignia on the cap.

Thanks to Gavin Hribar for the tip.

Opinion BY Armin

Petco Unleashes Unhealthy Logo

Originally established in 1965 as a mail-order veterinary supply business, Petco opened its first retail store in 1976. Today, Pecto has more than 22,000 employees at 1,000 stores across the U.S. carrying up to 10,000 “different pet-related items for dogs, cats, fish, reptiles and amphibians, birds and small animals.” They also sell basic pets like fish, hamsters, and snakes — we sometimes use it as a mini zoo for our daughters. Yesterday Petco announced revisions to its logo and tagline, taking it from “where the pets go” to “where the healthy pets go”. Unhealthy pets can go fuck themselves. Apologies for the harsh language but I find the tagline change completely obnoxious. On to the logo.

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Opinion BY Armin

The Edmonton Valley Zoo is Watching You

First opened to the public in 1959, the Edmonton Valley Zoo is a small zoo with 350 animals — in contrast to, say, the 4,000 animals found at the San Diego Zoo. With a master plan in place since 2005 and committed funding from the city since 2009 the Edmonton Valley Zoo is gearing up for a lot of changes and expansions for 2012. This past May the zoo announced a new identity designed by Edmonton-based Calder Bateman.

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Opinion BY Armin

If this Chicken’s a Kickin’ don’t Come a Cluckin’

With the first location opened in 1997, The Kickin’ Chicken is a full service, full bar, full menu restaurant featuring chicken wings, tenders, wraps, sandwiches and burgers. (Hungry and thirsty yet?). The Kickin’ Chicken now has seven locations in North and South Carolina and is revving up their franchising business so they needed an overhaul to their identity to attract franchisers. The new look has been designed by Charleston, SC-based Fuzzco.

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Opinion BY Armin

Funny Smile

Known mostly for its solid roster of sitcom reruns and old-ish comedy movies TBS has grown into a cable television force to contend with: It’s home to Conan, it has attracted original programming from powerhouse entertainer Tyler Perry, and, well, you will find Groundhog Day showing just at the right time when your brain needs some Bill Murray. Since 2004 TBS has been using its “smile” logo and this month it has introduced a complete new on-air look, designed by Los Angeles-based Ferroconcrete, that revitalizes the channel, bringing the smile literally to life.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Madison Mallards

The Madison Mallards, based in Madison, Wisconsin, are members of the 16-team summer collegiate Northwoods League. In February they unveiled a new identity, designed by local firm Shine Advertising. A bigger view of the logo is available after the jump.

Thanks to Nathan Garn for the tip.

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Opinion BY Armin

Walibi Rocks

First opened to the public in 1975 in Wavre, Belgium (near Brussels) by Eddy Meeùs, Walibi is a family of amusement parks with locations in the original Wavrens, two in France, one in Holland, and a water park counterpary in Belgium as well, called Aqualibi. The name comes from a combination of three towns: Wavre, Limal, and Bièrges — the kangaroo character reportedly came after Meeùs’ son noticed that a wallaby looked like a kangaroo. The parks were purchased by Six Flags in 1998, then sold to British investment company Palamon Capital Partners in 2004, then to Compagnie des Alpes in 2006, who own a wide range of amusement parks across Europe. Earlier this year, Walibi unveiled a complete new look and Walibi-themed universe in collaboration with multiple specialists in animation, marketing, merchandising, and more. The identity was designed by FigTree in Paris. The site NewsParcs has the complete story in detail.

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In Brief BY Armin

In Brief: February Miscellany

Today you are getting another miscellany because of a major snowstorm in Austin, TX — three quarters of an inch! — that will put both of my daughters at home all day so every minute counts and must be optimized, meaning I can’t spend the necessary time on a proper review this morning. Still, some juicy things to keep you entertained this Friday.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Lulu’s Thai Noodle Shop & Satay Bar

In business for twenty years and recently relocated to a bigger building, Lulu’s Thai Noodle Shop & Satay Bar is reportedly one excellent place to eat in Kansas City. Designed by the aptly named Stir.

Opinion BY Joe Marianek

Papaya King: Regally Good

Since 1932, Papaya King has delivered sweet/savory subsistence in New York City. Somehow, after 68 years, the brand has resisted gentrification. While it feels like this institution has been franchised onto every block, in reality there are only several official locations which are in ferocious competition with other namesake brands who all aim to corner the hot dog culinary category including Gray’s Papaya and Nathan’s, (not to mention street vendors or the Shake Shack.) In this update, designer Joe Guzman at Skaggs Design has embraced the existing vernacular of “organized chaos” and built a system to deliver a consistent experience on packaging, signage, and online.

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Opinion BY Armin

Gazelephants in the Wild

Launched earlier this month with a somewhat subdued splash, the RightNetwork is a new media company dedicated to the views of, well, The Right. The Republicans. The GOP. Presenting a “right-minded perspective that includes an entire spectrum of opinion from thoughtful and reserved to bold and brash” through original programming. It features Kelsey Grammer, aka Frasier Crane, as its spokesperson. Its content is available online and theoretically on TV, available on demand at relatively unpopular cable services like Verizon FiOS TV, Sky Angel, and Blue Ridge. And competing against other TV animals like NBC’s peacock, the RightNetwork is introducing the — wait for it — Gazelephant. “We wondered what would happen,” blogged Frasier, “if we combined the power of the largest land mammal on earth [and mascot of the Republican Party] with the agile, fast as all get-out, Gazelle.” Wonder no more readers.

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Opinion BY Armin

MapQuest comes Alive

Back in September of 2008 we reported on the evolution of the MapQuest logo and the feeling of the majority was that it was too little too late to make up ground against Google Maps — two years later, MapQuest is betting that it’s not too late with a complete overhaul of their identity and their mapping experience. As a subsidiary of AOL, MapQuest will be integrating the local brainpower provided by its sibling service, Patch; you can read the full details of what MapQuest is setting out to do in their blog. The new identity has been designed by Wolff Olins.

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