We come across logos almost everywhere, but have you ever tried looking deeper into their craft to find hidden images?
Logos are crafted with intricate designs to enable them to communicate much more than first impressions, often incorporating hidden messages that add layers of meaning to a brand's visual identity.
In this article, we will dive into how logos of some world-renowned companies are designed and the intricate details that many of us often overlook.
Baskin-Robbins Hidden Meaning
The logo of Baskin-Robbins has always been associated with variety and indulgence. When the logo appears, it immediately conveys a sense of fun and excitement, inviting customers to explore its deeper meanings. Their 31 iconic styles of logo branding (every month of the year, people can have different styles) show how powerful the marketing team possesses.
They call themselves the ice cream capital of the world, offering a range of 31 flavors. During winter, when it’s ice cream season, the marketing teams confirm people will accept them at their business locations for ice cream.
This form of branding has become part of their identity, reminding people of the monstrous eras of high nutritional convenience food use. The signature “31” is now part of their logo and never ceases to amaze consumers, while the constantly evolving logo is here to stay.
The logo’s unique, captivating color combination is blue, and the brand name part is pink, synonymous with the ice cream, hinting at amusement, and over 3 decades, remains magical to their branding.
Aside from the aesthetics, the ‘31-flavors’ concept embodies the brand’s promise to innovate by adding new seasonal or limited-time offerings while keeping fan favorites available throughout the year.
This type of branding has solidified the brand as a household name in the ice cream industry, assuring that customers associate the logo not only with ice cream but also with new possibilities and enjoyable moments.
The hidden meaning behind the ‘31’ in the logo signifies the brand’s commitment to offering a different flavor for each day of the month, emphasizing variety and continuous innovation.
Source: brightside.me
Toyota Hidden Meaning
The logo of Toyota is a paradigm of sophisticated and clever branding that conceals all the letters from the company name in its combined form with a unique shape.
More than an attention-grabbing symbol, the three interlocking ovals are the letters Т, О, Y, О, Т, A, and they are hidden in the logo’s negative space. This hidden message enhances the brand image in such a way that it must be remembered, making the Toyota logo one of the best-designed automobile marks globally.
Unlike the obscure letters, the brand’s emblem also communicates trust, unity, and connection as a customer, which blends with Toyota’s image of reliability and innovation. The two inner ovals depict the bond between the company and the customer, and the outer oval includes both depicting the globe, which illustrates the brand’s expanding reach and vision for the future.
Steeped in Japanese culture, the logo symbolizes the Japanese design philosophy emphasizing simplicity, balance, and harmony, which are key to Toyota’s production system and business strategy.
Its beauty is not only in the ease of recognition but also in its flexibility across various platforms and media. Whether on cars, billboards, or digital displays, the logo always gives the image of Toyota, a global leader in innovation, quality, and customer loyalty.
Source: brightside.me
Tour de France Logo Hidden Meaning
The Tour de France logo is a classic example of a logo that represents what the event stands for. At first glance, it appears to be a simple, text-based logo, but the striking logo features incorporated accurately reflect the spirit of the race.
The lowercase ‘r’ in the word “Tour” is strategically crafted to resemble a rider crouched on top of a bike, mirroring the essence of French cycling. This characteristic distinguishes the Tour, trademarking it as a brand.
Moreover, the yellow circle in the design has a dual function. It represents the sun shining bright during the famous summer occasion while at the same time serving as the symbol for the winner’s yellow jersey. This clever imagery depicts the logo to the customs and sights of the Tour de France.
Source: visualhierarchy.co
F1 Logo Features Hidden Meaning
Using the negative space of the F1 logo mark, you can see how cleverly and thoughtfully the designer embedded the “1” between the F and red racing stripes, embodying the speed and intensity of F1 racing. These racing stripes represent motion and liveliness.
The logo also reflects the competitive nature of motorsports. It uses sharp typography to give the illusion of an F1 car’s aerodynamics, simulating a sense of pushing forward. The red racing stripes stimulate feelings of energy and warmth like a blazing fire, reflecting the rush of the track.
Different brands have hidden their logos in symbols in a similar manner. Continental, a tire-producing company, hides a wheel’s shape in the letters C and o in its logo. Both logos effectively employ visual narratives for immediate cognizance and association.
Inspired by its intended purpose, the F1 logo depicts speed through its sharp design and embedded symbols. It is undoubtedly one of the most effective and widely known badges in motorsports, as it combines innovation, sophistication, and the culture of high-octane racing, which is precisely the sport itself.
Source: pinterest.com
Beats Hidden Meaning
The Beats logo is a good example of minimalist design with clever symbolism. At first, it looks like a simple lowercase b and circle, but the emblem contains a deeper meaning.
The combination of the “b” and circle forms a person with headphones on, which captures the brand’s identity as an audio provider. This stunning imagery makes the logo strikingly memorable for music lovers and serves as a clever marketing strategy.
The logo represents Beats’ core ethos: a quality sound that immerses the user completely. It also showcases the brand’s commitment to innovation and style through the smooth, modern design, which makes the brand more appealing in the audio market.
Image-sharing platform Pinterest also hides a message in its logo. The “P” represents a pushpin, where users can “pin” content to their digital proof boards. This subtle design speaks to the platform’s purpose, cementing its identity. The Pinterest logo, with its simple yet meaningful design, highlights the 'P' inside a red circle that also represents a pin, cleverly integrating the platform's purpose of allowing users to curate and save ideas, inspirations, and interests.
Both Beats and Pinterest showcase how a calculated logo design can go beyond appearance and serve deeper meaning by symbolizing the brand’s purpose. These elements connect users to the brand and solidify the logos as meaningful.
Source: brightside.me
Toblerone Hidden Meaning
More than just a symbol of the Swiss Alps, the Toblerone logo hides a hidden image of a bear in the silhouette of a mountain, marking the company’s homage to Bern, Switzerland, home of Toblerone.
Bears are known for their strength, adding resilience to Swiss craftsmanship. The city is aptly called the “City of Bears” and brings tribute to the brand’s origin.
The bear represents strength, resilience, and Swiss craftsmanship, showcasing Toblerone’s dedication to quality and tradition. Including such a powerful symbol with negative space is a testimony to an innovative design that makes the logo delightful and meaningful.
The name Toblerone tells a story of its own. It was derived from “Tobler,” the founder’s surname, Theodor Tobler, and “Torrone,” which means nougat in Italian.
This combination draws attention to chocolate’s honey-almond nougat. This blend reflects the combination of Swiss superiority with Mediterranean nature, forming the unique identity of Toblerone.
By combining history, craftsmanship, and cultural roots into one symbol, Toblerone has mastered creating an iconic logo that proves excellent design tells a story.
Source: logome.ai
FedEx Hidden Arrow Hidden Meaning
Shipping and logistics leader FedEx stands tall among its competitors due to its well-established brand image. While aesthetics is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think about shipping, it is for FedEx.
The bolded letters enclosed in a modern box represent FedEx for many, but the intricacies of the logo go much deeper than one could imagine. FedEx features clever use of negative space with an arrow hidden between the "E" and the "x."
The arrow symbolized by the logo designer Lindon Leader has been a subject of great debate. According to my understanding, the arrow illustrates the fundamental values that any delivery company should encapsulate: speed, precision, and movement.
Not only is this design brilliant, but it once again reaffirms how brand identity can encapsulate the essence of a business without words or explanation.
Over the years, the logo has become shinier, but the arrow has remained a prime example of using design to enhance branding while maintaining professionalism.
In so doing, despite the endless competition among corporations, it serves as a visual identifier of the company's pursuit of innovation and progress, proving to be one of the most iconic logos globally.
Source: thebrandingjournal.com
NBC Hidden Meaning
The NBC Peacock logo is more than a colorful artwork. It symbolizes creativity and progress, as well as the network’s history. The peacock was added in 1956 when color TV was taking off, and it represented how advanced NBC embraced the change from monochrome television to color, integrating both analog and digital technologies.
The 'VA' in the Sony Vaio logo, for example, represents an analog wave, signifying traditional technology, while 'IO' represents binary digits, bridging the gap between the analog and digital realms.
The six colorful feathers are not purely decorative. They also represent the company’s various subdivisions for news, sports, and entertainment. In addition to the colors, the logo represents innovation in that the forward-facing peacock depicts NBC’s willingness to move forward instead of backward.
The white space in the peacock’s feathers blends into a semicircle, portraying unity and wholeness. Over the years, NBC Peacock has changed, but it has always retained its values of celebrating diversity, creativity, and the ability to shift within an evolving media world.
Source: pinterest.com
Pizza Hut Hidden Meaning
Like any other Hut logo, the signature red Pizza Hut logo is more than just a name. It has some underlying resemblance to architecture, which relates to the company’s history.
The red-colored and curved feature is not there simply for aesthetics. It serves a deeper purpose of representing a roof paying tribute to the original design of the Pizza Hut restaurants.
The logo’s cover roof pays homage to the brand’s distinct red-topped buildings that characterized the early locations. This form of design evokes nostalgia and builds on the brand’s heritage by allowing consumers to remember the quaint dine-in experience that made Pizza Hut famous.
This element helps the logo maintain a solid visual connection to the past while simultaneously adapting to modern branding styles. Similarly, the dark lines in the Cisco logo symbolize the Golden Gate Bridge, emphasizing the company's connection to its San Francisco headquarters.
Source: logome.ai
London Symphony Orchestra Hidden Meaning
The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) logo is a minimalist work of art in itself, as it depicts letterforms and symbols in an artistic manner that tells the story of music and motion. Abstractly, the logo is an amorphic and fluid shape; however, upon further examination, it gently reveals the letters LSO, which are scribed within the logo in a looped, flowing fashion.
The phonetic and nonphonetic elements tell the story of a beautiful musical metaphor. The lines also represent a flowing baton capturing life's orchestral performance, energy, rhythm, and dynamism. This metaphor captivates the thought that music is heard and felt. The style of drawing of the letters written is loose, as is expected of the way classical music is played. This further emphasizes the logos association with passion, artistry, and excellence.
The London Symphony Orchestra logo, positioned within sound and visuals, captures the flowing movements and serves as one of the most well-thought-out designs and identities in classical music.
Source: thebrandingjournal.com
Unilever
The logo of Unilever is not only a letter "U" but a representation of their diverse and sustainable approach to branding and numerous products. Typically, monograms do not consist of so many parts. With Unilever, however, it is different: The stem of the "U" is formed with 25 different icons that make up various elements of Unilever's business and show their commitment to improving people's daily lives.
A respective leaf represents nature and sustainable sourcing, spoon nutrition, and food brands, recycling environmental responsibility, while a spark symbolizes innovation. Waves, bees, hearts, and hands represent elements of hygiene, beauty, and personal care, which Unilever deals with.
These elements combined build up an intricate design that helps reinforce the identity of Unilever as a global leader in consumer goods. The logo and marketing messages underline the company's mission to nourish people, make the world a better place, and improve the population's health.
Blue is used to depict trust, dependability, and social accountability for business, corresponding to the image of Unilever, which aims to make sustainable living commonplace for everyone. With this carefully designed logo, Unilever conveys a story of innovation, diversity, and purpose all in one mark.
Source: thebrandingjournal.com
Audi
The Audi logo, with its intertwining four rings, is a sign of legacy, synergy, and power within the automotive domain. Each ring represents one of the four founding companies: Audi, DKW, Horch, and Wanderer, which integrated in 1932 to establish the Auto Union and now is the Audi brand. This collaboration was a turning point in the history of automobiles as it set the stage for the emergence of a brand that would epitomize originality, accuracy, and power.
The rings combine partnership and connection while reflecting unity in mechanical engineering and artistry. In addition to its historical relevance, the logo's sleek and simplistic design epitomizes modernity, further solidifying Audi's claim as a producer of luxurious, high-class, fast machinery. Depending on the version, the logo's chrome or black coloration increases its elegance and refinement, resonating with the brand's identity.
Emblematic of innovation, excellence, and diversity in automobiles, the Audi logo symbolizes German craftsmanship's timeless evolution.
Source: designyourway.net
Gillette
Gillette's emblem is a strong case for branding accuracy since it illustrates the company model of providing exceptional-quality shaving products. At first glance, the logo seems to be a mere typography, but on deeper inspection, it tells a story through integrated design features.
The "G" and "i" in Gillette are sliced at an angle, just like a razor blade cut. This minor adjustment symbolizes cutthroat efficiency and modern technology, which have characterized Gillette's brand in the grooming industry for over a century. The logotype, together with the brand Gillette provides, signifies a blend of power, innovation, and manhood that the company seeks to project.
Often displayed in blue or metallic silver, the logo evokes trust, reliability, and premium quality, reinforcing Gillette’s position as a leader in shaving technology. Through its minimalist yet impactful design, the Gillette logo communicates the brand’s dedication to sharpness, precision, and the smoothest possible shave.
Source: 1000logos.net
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Conclusion
Incorporating these “secret” features with hidden meanings makes a logo more than just design. It helps construct a brand identity. Through this means, puzzling and culture-laden messages could be embedded into the logo, making it easy to grasp while challenging the audience to delve deeper.
These details enrich logos, making them more unique. They help them evoke curiosity, allowing brands to distinguish themselves easily. Once the concealed feature is revealed, it is gratifying and fosters a sense of connection to the brand.
Pay closer attention to brands’ logos because you never know when an arrow, icon, or message will pop that shift your perception entirely. Reminders derived from the form of hidden symbols show the importance of design beyond aesthetics as it conveys narratives.
About Clay
Clay is a UI/UX design & branding agency in San Francisco. We team up with startups and leading brands to create transformative digital experience. Clients: Facebook, Slack, Google, Amazon, Credit Karma, Zenefits, etc.
Learn moreAbout Clay
Clay is a UI/UX design & branding agency in San Francisco. We team up with startups and leading brands to create transformative digital experience. Clients: Facebook, Slack, Google, Amazon, Credit Karma, Zenefits, etc.
Learn more
