18 votes

The Burger King rebrand: Design fit for a king?

19 comments

  1. [2]
    Wes
    Link
    The word that comes to mind for me isn't "old", but "vintage". It feels old timey but with lessons learned from modern design. I actually quite like it.

    The word that comes to mind for me isn't "old", but "vintage". It feels old timey but with lessons learned from modern design. I actually quite like it.

    14 votes
  2. novov
    Link
    In my opinion, the new design - especially the logo - is vastly superior to the old one. Due to the blue swoosh, I didn't realise it was supposed to be a burger for years.

    In my opinion, the new design - especially the logo - is vastly superior to the old one. Due to the blue swoosh, I didn't realise it was supposed to be a burger for years.

    9 votes
  3. [4]
    jzimbel
    Link
    Whenever I read about another high-visibility rebranding, I can’t not share this fantastic track inspired by the insane doc for the 2008 Pepsi logo redesign.

    Whenever I read about another high-visibility rebranding, I can’t not share this fantastic track inspired by the insane doc for the 2008 Pepsi logo redesign.

    Here we have a circle, smooth and inoffensive.
    This will be the basis, for your revolution.

    7 votes
    1. [3]
      TheRtRevKaiser
      Link Parent
      And that makes me think of the amazing song Lemon Demon - Redesign Your Logo which is based on that document.

      And that makes me think of the amazing song Lemon Demon - Redesign Your Logo which is based on that document.

      1. [2]
        jzimbel
        Link Parent
        That’s the song I linked in my own comment 🙃

        That’s the song I linked in my own comment 🙃

        4 votes
        1. TheRtRevKaiser
          Link Parent
          whoops, I saw the link to the branding document and didn't even notice that you had already linked to it... Sorry, that's what I get for trying to do to many things at once...

          whoops, I saw the link to the branding document and didn't even notice that you had already linked to it...

          Sorry, that's what I get for trying to do to many things at once...

          2 votes
  4. [2]
    sodium
    Link
    It seems so outdated but a but more global? I can see this doing well in Asian Markets. Burger King in North America is atrocious, but I loved their burgers in Thailand. They are a clean,...

    It seems so outdated but a but more global? I can see this doing well in Asian Markets. Burger King in North America is atrocious, but I loved their burgers in Thailand. They are a clean, reasonably priced alternative to local food which I think there is a market for.

    6 votes
    1. unknown user
      Link Parent
      I'm not going to go for a full-on-defence of this rebranding (although I do like it), but I just mentioned in a comment here that I believe it's a mistake to consider design as a linear,...

      I'm not going to go for a full-on-defence of this rebranding (although I do like it), but I just mentioned in a comment here that I believe it's a mistake to consider design as a linear, only-forward-moving process. It's a lot more fluid and cyclical than that, with inspiration coming from multiple sources, cultures, and time periods—and therefore by extension I think you have to be careful when wielding the word "outdated", which is a very broad brush.

      Consider: is it just the whole thing that's "outdated"? That's highly unlikely because branding design has so many moving parts—so, is it just some particular elements? The typeface? The palette? The context in which its used?

      Then you get into more meta questions like, what does "outdated" even mean? Outdated has a clear definition when referring to physical things: a piece of technology can be "outdated", but what does it mean for a design to be "outdated"?

      7 votes
  5. NoblePath
    Link
    So the pr campaign around this design change is so amazing it not only made it to tildes, it also prompted me to go try a whopper. It tastes exactly as I remember, and after a decade of eating...

    So the pr campaign around this design change is so amazing it not only made it to tildes, it also prompted me to go try a whopper. It tastes exactly as I remember, and after a decade of eating mich better, that was quite disappointing. I do like the mini logo though.

    6 votes
  6. [2]
    Comment deleted by author
    Link
    1. drannex
      Link Parent
      Damn that's clever, I hope the marketing genius behind that got a hefty pay raise.

      Damn that's clever, I hope the marketing genius behind that got a hefty pay raise.

      5 votes
  7. [7]
    Akir
    Link
    I really don't like these designs. They look like they came straight out of the 70s, complete with their ugly reliance on plain flat colors in tones that remind me of diarrhea. The illustrations...

    I really don't like these designs. They look like they came straight out of the 70s, complete with their ugly reliance on plain flat colors in tones that remind me of diarrhea. The illustrations are done in a style so simple that they look like they were drawn by the CEO instead of an actual graphic artist. The worst has to be the font though; it's just plain ugly and outdated.

    But what I really don't get is why they are choosing to go this way. I thought Burger King was losing money left and right. Why are they trying to appeal to Boomers when it seems like they would do better to focus on younger markets?

    2 votes
    1. GoingMerry
      Link Parent
      I’d argue the new brand actually does speak to younger markets rather than boomers. The font is much too fluid for targeting older readers. I’m completely on the opposite end as you - I love the...

      I’d argue the new brand actually does speak to younger markets rather than boomers. The font is much too fluid for targeting older readers.

      I’m completely on the opposite end as you - I love the new brand. Feels a lot more organic and natural, and harkens back to a simpler time. Really Fat Albert in execution.

      I think it’s a great step and helps differentiate and position. Their logo was more generic before.

      8 votes
    2. [3]
      unknown user
      Link Parent
      There seems to be a trend in recent years for a renaissance for channeling older designs through a lens of what I can only describe as "retromodernism"—I'm sure there's a better term for this, but...

      There seems to be a trend in recent years for a renaissance for channeling older designs through a lens of what I can only describe as "retromodernism"—I'm sure there's a better term for this, but expect to see more of it in the future. I think it's a mistake to assume that design moves forward linearly—it's almost fashionable to cyclically return to previous aesthetic trends over time, and provide a modern take on what that looks like.

      The amount of variance you can achieve with "flat" design we've come to associate with the late 2010's clearly has a smaller domain space of workable options that more complex graphical elements of years-gone-past, so it's not surprising to me to see lots of new takes by incorporating older elements and styles into modern branding to provide not just an aesthetic difference from other brands, but also a major stylistic one too.

      Expect a lot more 60's and 70's vibes—infused with modern principles—going forward, I bet. And you know what? I actually really like it. Give me retro. Let's explore what retro takes in modern times looks like. It's a breath of fresh air in a land of flat icons and gradient backgrounds.

      6 votes
      1. [2]
        Akir
        Link Parent
        I understand, and even agree with what you are saying, but I don't think this is a good execution of those ideas as you are explaining them to me. I get it when I see the storefront renderings...

        I understand, and even agree with what you are saying, but I don't think this is a good execution of those ideas as you are explaining them to me. I get it when I see the storefront renderings where it is clearly modern in style, but when it comes to their graphic designs, the packaging design, and even most of the uniforms look like they might have just been unearthed from an ancient warehouse.

        At the very least it's coherent and consistent. And I will definitely agree that this update was long overdue.

        1 vote
        1. unknown user
          Link Parent
          I don't generally agree, but this made me chuckle—what great way to paint a picture expressing your viewpoint.

          even most of the uniforms look like they might have just been unearthed from an ancient warehouse.

          I don't generally agree, but this made me chuckle—what great way to paint a picture expressing your viewpoint.

          2 votes
    3. Greg
      Link Parent
      I don't personally like it much either, but I wouldn't call it bad design. It's clean, recognisable, and readable. It evokes the history of the brand as well as a specific era in time. It's...

      I don't personally like it much either, but I wouldn't call it bad design. It's clean, recognisable, and readable. It evokes the history of the brand as well as a specific era in time. It's distinct and different enough to most other contemporary brands that we're talking about it, with more positive opinions than negative so far.

      I think others have hit the nail on the head in saying it's targeting a younger audience, for whom the 70s are so far back that they're a part of history rather than just "old".

      4 votes
    4. knocklessmonster
      Link Parent
      I think they're doing this to target younger markets (Xers, millenials, Z). In general the fastest way to do this is to try to appeal to a given groups sense of nostalgia. To me, this looks like...

      I think they're doing this to target younger markets (Xers, millenials, Z). In general the fastest way to do this is to try to appeal to a given groups sense of nostalgia. To me, this looks like an obvious throwback style, very 70s/80s (real 80s, not coked out purple and yellow synthwave 80s), which is the modern equivalent of 50s nostalgia through the 80s to the mid 00s.

      I'd rather they be creative enough to come up with something distinctly modern, but nostalgia, even if it's for an era one didn't grow up in, seems to sell.

      2 votes
  8. herson
    Link
    Wow, I love the new logo, sadly I can't say the same about their food, but it was a great move for them.

    Wow, I love the new logo, sadly I can't say the same about their food, but it was a great move for them.

    1 vote