Subscribe for free to our monthly newsletter containing the new CMF trends.

As the Y2K(Year 2000) style representing the years between the late 1990s until the early 2000s rapidly makes a comeback, logo play, a way of designing products through bold exposure of the company's brand logo, is returning in popularity. Perceived as a phenomenon caused by the convergence of consumer need for solid brand value with such recent trends as the revenge spending by COVID-19 suffering consumers and the increase in flex culture. many companies are proactively utilizing logo play to enhance their own brand identity among the endless number of similar designs that continue to emerge.

hïda's September newsletter looks into the ever more diverse and extreme world of logo play designs. Let's take away some eye-opening insights and creative ideas from the CMF examples that hïda has prepared.

The prominence of logo play in the fashion industry

First, let us take a look at some examples of text-based logos showing off intense presence in fashion apparel. Balenciaga, which has been leading logo play through their diagonal monogram pattern, has created the logo strip fluid blouse. The seemingly chaotic taping of logo strips and the contrast between the black logo and white background really stand out. In Kiton's case, the letters K, T, and N representing their brand name have been repeatedly placed in regular intervals all over the T-shirt thereby making the brand name prominent.

In the case of THE OPEN PRODUCT and Versace, the companies have emphasized their personalities through the usage of transformed texts giving rhythmic-like feelings.

Bags and sneakers, even stools?

Logo play's influence has branched out even into the areas of general merchandise and lifestyle products. In the living brand SAY TOUCHE's example, the words "PLEASE DON'T SIT, JUST LOOK" have been carved using mother-of-pearl onto their wooden stool seat instead of placing their brand name, thereby depicting their special witty style. Within "The Hacker Project" which is a collaboration by Gucci with Balenciaga to commemorate their 100th anniversary, the possession value of the small hourglass bag has been greatly enhanced by combining Gucci's pattern with Balenciaga's iconic silhouette and diagonally arranged logo.

In the case of Fendi's classic bag Peekaboo, the logo has been transformed so as to give a jolting feeling moving away from their traditional calm and neat design, thereby creating an atmosphere full of liveliness and freedom. As for Dior's B23 high-top sneakers, a very unique atmosphere has been created by applying the Oblique pattern, signifying the company's brand on the outer part in three dimensions.

Is this really the brand that I know?

Lastly, let me give some examples where logos are cleverly mixed by different brands through collaboration. The luxury brand Gucci has collaborated with the sports brand Adidas and successfully launched their Adidas X Gucci Collection affectionately called "Guccidas". This collection, characterized by the retro design and vibrant colors, is designed using an exotic mixture of the trefoil logo from Adidas with the GG monogram from Gucci, which resulted in drawing much public attention upon its introduction. The French designer brand Ami has also achieved popular success by introducing the Ami X Puma Collection in collaboration with the sports brand Puma. They were able to create a sense of freshness into their product by combining the signature Ami Heart (Ami de Coeur) symbol with Puma's logo while further emphasizing the silhouette of classic sportswear.

The inevitable environmental meeting of 

hanji(Korean paper) leather with logo play

What do you think will happen if the diverse logo play designs previously introduced were to meet with sustainable eco-friendly materials? hïda's CMF created using hanji (Korean paper) leather is biodegradable under certain conditions since over 90% of its content is eco-friendly material, and it is less prone to getting wet or contaminated due to its waterproof/anti-contamination coating. For molding, emboss patterning has been applied, and hanji leather is recommended to be used for products which need to emphasize texts for brand logo or slogans since the application of diverse colors and various stamping means are equally possible as is the case for ordinary leather. Information regarding hanji leather and other vegan leathers, such as cactus, apple, pineapple, etc. is available on hïda's website.