Best Rebrands of 2015

In our opinion, here are 15 of the best rebrands we saw in 2015.

No. 15: Mr. Coffee

I think one of the best things that can be said about a rebrand is that it makes the previous one look ancient. The rebrand for Mr. Coffee makes the old one look like that doily under your grandma’s candy dish. Of course, when you look fresh and contemporary you have to remind people you were established in 1970.

Designed by: Blacktop Creative

No. 14: Melbourne Football Club

Every time I see a rebrand that removes the noise and makes it all signal I am happy. Look at that mess on the left. They played one of my favorite games, “how many things can we remove and still have it?” Shield. Monogram. Red. Blue. Done.

Designed in-house.

No. 13: NRDC (National Resources Defense Council)

I love that new, confident bear. Love it. The shield commands authority. The star feels like a compass. It just feels so much more eager and ambitious.

Designed by: Ross Bruggink

No. 12: OpenTable

There are so many of these internet startup logos that look homemade and it is so wonderful to see them all going away (I’m looking at you, too, Google). Sorry to whoever made the original but doesn’t it look like the first website you ever saw. You know that beige, poorly spaced, literal hunk-a-junk? With a name like OpenTable I don’t need much else to understand this is the same exact company. Just a circle, maybe two – and a brighter red.

Designed by: Tomorrow Partners

No. 11: IHOP

I don’t think I’ve ever been inside an IHOP, but the new smile makes me kinda happy. The brighter blue makes the old one look like your high school locker, doesn’t it? Just overall less formal, easier to reproduce and OMG, yes, get rid of “restaurant” – we get it.

Designed by: Studio Tilt

No. 10: StubHub!

Yep, I’m just going to say it… I love when brands remove crap. The ticket shape in the exclamation point – bye bye. Maybe they are more than just tickets now? Are we orange or blue? We’re blue. That’s right, the best brands will be remembered for one color only. The gray, shaded, oblongular voice bubble thing… straighten up your act fella. Clean, to the point, crisp and all grown up.

Designed by: Duncan/Channon

No. 9: Hobby Lobby

At first glance you might be wondering, “uhh, this isn’t best by any means.” Sure there isn’t much ballyhoo, but once again, I applaud companies that have the courage to remove needless, prosaic details from their logos. Simple, simple, simple wins every time. Call me a purist. Ockham’s razor, folks. That, and a new orange that isn’t moribund, always helps.

We’re not sure who designed this, sorry. Probably someone with a functioning delete key.

No. 8: Verizon

Any time someone would ask me what is my least favorite logo, this was hands down it. The worst logo ever conceived, if you can call it that. A big, crazy, too-thin check mark, a “me too, bottom hung” super Z. Hey! Let’s make it all italic while we’re at it. Just awful at every level. Thank the deity of your choice that finally ding-dong the witch is dead. I just wish the new checkmark was a little less bashful. Other than that, thank you. Thank you, Michael.

Designed by: Pentagram partner Michael Bierut

No. 7: Lexmark

80’s hair, no one ever liked it. And nothing says 80’s like small caps typography and that fangy diamond. Plus the name Lexmark just makes you think off-brand, discount ink jet – doesn’t it? Oh well. I love that, hey while we’re at it, we’re now green. Guts. You know, guts can take you a very long way in logo design. The new “x” turned 90 degrees is a dandy trick that adds just the right amount of charisma. So they make camera shutters now?

Designed by: Moving Brands

No. 6: Spike

There’s really nothing horribly wrong with the old one. It could have marched on for a while. I just love one-color logos. And, finding a visual device within type alone always warm my heart. Just don’t step on it in the dark – those edges look painful.

Designed by: bluemarlin

No. 5: Saint Louis University

I wish other universities could see that those messy crests with microscopic details are illegible to the naked eye. The fleur-de-lis is the star here and the new design team knew it. Mono weight lines clean up the entire aesthetic. For someone seeking how to do stately AND contemporary, this is it. Oh, if it gets too modern we’ll remind people we’ve been around for some time (ahem, 1818).

Designed by: Olson

No. 4: Green Mountain Coffee

When you’re old logo is so poor it is almost unfair to include this. Anything, nearly anything, would be better than that lifeless dread. Clearly the coffee on the right is superior. I wonder if they actually did improve the taste of the coffee. I bet if I had a sip of the exact same coffee in these two cups the new one would be expensive and the old one would be cheap, dusty, on the bottom shelf of an interstate gas station. I’m just saying, rebranding works! I wonder if the c-suite asked if the mountain could be green instead of white, though.

Designed by: Prophet

No. 3: Destination British Columbia

I’ve never been here, but the new logo is what I expect it to be like. Innate, innocent, unique, a work of art. Bye bye Microsoft clipart, hello hand-carved friendliness. Here’s their entire brand strategy.

Sorry, I couldn’t find who designed this.

No. 2: Coors Light

What a fun project to work on, eh? If you’ve read this entire post you’ll see I cherish minimalism. What a colossal improvement this is. The old logo sparks memories of the junk rattling around in your uncle’s truck when he picked you up that one time in 3rd grade. The rest of the brand expressions are just as glorius.

Designed by: Turner Duckworth

No. 1: Netflix

I’ve never been more inspired to be doing what I do than after I watched this:

Endlessly flexible. Remarkably simple, nifty and expertly finished. What a wonderful solution.

With hat in hand…. great job: Gretel