September Industry

Can’t say i agree bob. looks really dated for me…
value and service frustrate me because i think they try a bit hard to be quirky, or at least that is the impression i get from the work, no doubt it is well thought through… but often to the extent it feels contrived… not natural. Still they have a nice range of work and clients so that are doing something right :)

Hi J

I would find the mark dated if there were other fashion brands that had been overusing a similar idea or feel, but in it’s current context, I think that it is actually it’s strength, in that it is old school, and although this may be a little contrived, it manages to be quite different from the marks of other brands in that sector.
I think there is value in that.

B

J

I’ve spared you the embarrassment by correcting some of your spelling mistakes ;)

J & B

To be honest with you both, the Bill Amberg work isn’t really my cup of tea either aesthetically speaking. But I do of course, respect and appreciate the fact that they came up with a solution that works for the client, and looks different from the majority of brands in that particular sector.

There was an interesting article on the Johnson Banks blog about luxury logos which is worth a read if you have the time:

http://www.johnsonbanks.co.uk/thoughtfortheweek/index.php?year=2008&month=11

The article is called Follow that sheep (part one)

Hey David,

good article, and to my point, actually creating something different in that market, is going to be firstly tricky to come up with something that will work, but then to also sell it in successfully to a client, who is more than likely to be part of the ‘me too’ or ‘better safe than sorry’ crowd, is surely worth merit.

Yeh ok, I may not be used to it, or my design tastes may conflict with it, but all the same, it is trying to achieve something for the brand. I’m sure there are many successful examples of this… but I, like you, draw the line, when it comes to disasters like the 2012 Olympics logo!

;-)

David, a good question indeed.

These designers you speak of, if they are not just being contrary for the sake of it, then I do admire that they challenge themselves in this way, even I questioned myself several times about the 2012 identity, simply because it came from the hallowed grounds of Wolff Olins… oh, and cost 400k!

I thought to myself, there has to be something I haven’t spotted here, there must be something very very clever behind this…
but alas no, it was just plain ugly, it was limp, it was naff, it was annoying, and there was no getting round it.

J mentioned that Value and Service was sometimes contrived, this is more than contrived, this identity is so try hard and is desperatley out of touch, and anyway, how the hell did they even come to that conclusion? (I can imagine some ad guy somewhere saying, hey you know what guys, the kids love the 80s, yeah the 80s are back – and so are the Olympics!!)…

For me, as you may have gathered, it’s a big dissapointment, when so many design classics have previously been born from the Olympics, and then London, my home town, gets the chance of showing off it’s creative skill and flare to the world, it came up with something so cheap and tacky.

It’s just so Timmy Mallet!