The Volkswagen Group’s core values are “accountability, teamwork, servant’s attitude, and integrity.” In 2015, my first Volkswagen Touareg sat in front of the house for a full year before I could drive it. Each day that I saw the cream-colored car sitting there, the excitement to be able to drive it grew. Before I could remember, I was driving through town, windows down, blasting some country music. A few months later, we traded it in for another Volkswagen, this time it was a Tiguan, leased, smaller, blue, yet still iconic throughout my last year in high school. This past year, because of COVID-19, the company offered incredible deals, leading us to buy a 2020 Volkswagen Tiguan SE. Being at school, without a car, I drive around with friends and point out my car on the street every time I see one. Missing home, and the long drives have made me nostalgic for the old logo while studying Volkswagen. As incredibly iconic as the old logo is, the new logo just doesn’t live up to the luxurious spark that Volkswagen stands for.
As a company, their team is committed to upholding complete satisfaction for all of their customers. Their written goal is “to offer attractive, safe and environmentally sound vehicles which can compete in an increasingly tough market and set world standards in their respective class.” Volkswagen is one of the largest automotive giants in the world. Germany housed the first Volkswagen and eventually, their name made its way around the world. The Volkswagen Group holds 12 other automobile brands under their roof. They manufacture cars for their own brand and sell in 171 countries. Some examples of the 12 brands they have under their name are Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, and Porsche, to name just a few.
I found this quote on Volkswagens website, “The realignment of Volkswagen’s brand design is one of the world’s largest rebranding campaigns.” With this in mind, the new Volkswagen logo was created around July of 2019 to establish a younger, more modern visual. I think the redesigned logo is boring and bland with little to no detail compared to past logos. With the brand’s identity so recognizable and being one of the largest rebranding campaigns, I think they could have added a little detail to the work.
When comparing this logo to the other large motor companies that I named above, the updated Volkswagen logo failed to give off a luxurious aesthetic seen with the other brands’ logos. Although the smooth edges and crisp angles are pleasing to the eye, the logo has the ability to be scaled and still be recognized. Far away and small or close up and large, it holds relevance. It is hard for a new simple logo to slow a business like this from large sales from such a popularized brand name. I find it crazy how the designers worked on this logo for weeks, months, and maybe even years to get to the point where it is incredibly simplistic.
Creating a logo after being established for 84 years takes immense pressure for the designers. With the last logo redesign from 2012, the detail and visual expertise vary exponentially between the two. They both still hold the iconic circle incorporated with the ‘V’ above the ‘W’ within it on the solid color background. In my opinion, the particular line work, detail, and tone changes with a touch of shine and dimension in the 2012 version are visible and recognizable in any context. While the 2019 logo may be the ninth design created for the large corporation, it still holds significant power. The thinning of the lines as a whole seems almost too simple for how advanced the technology has become. I think the new logo is lifeless with little detail but still can be recognized almost anywhere. This logo lacks dimension and leaves for an extremely minimalist aesthetic.
Another important consideration when thinking about updating a company logo is whether it aligns with societal expectations. This logo was designed to appeal to the target population the company is looking to sell to. But, I think Volkswagen’s new and improved logo lacks the luxurious feel, as I stated previously, which may be displeasing to some. Some people buy cars to show it off, by minimizing the detail and the shine on the logo, it takes that fancy and expensive feeling away. In the coming years, I am interested in seeing where this design is taken and whether that be more detailed or less detailed than the current one. Overall, I think this updated logo design is a bit too simple for this luxurious of a brand.
