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02 VISUAL DE VELOPM ENT GUIDE

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Ideal re-branding process

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Brand / Ideal Toy Company Designer / Krishnapriya Dutta Gupta Class / Nature of Identity Instructor / Hunter Wimmer

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nature of identity

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02 VISUAL DE VELOPM ENT GUIDE

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OV E R V I E W

nature of identity

With the vision to revive Ideal’s original brand soul and with the future in mind, we move forward towards the development phase of our brand’s identity.

It primarily embodies the core attributes of the brand and the exploration corresponds to each one of those ideas.

The goal of this phase is to produce variety with diversity to help us narrow down on one focused direction that reflects the brand’s soul harmoniously.

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visual development guide

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Our Background History Logo Evolution New Vision New Goals The Keywords

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Logo Exploration Round 01 / Sketches Round 02 / Distill Round 03 / Initial Refinements Round 04 / Final Refinements

table of contents /

Logo Finalization

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Re-branding Research Similar Logos Brand Inspiration The Way Forward

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Sources Images

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Our Background History Logo Evolution New Vision New Goals

fig.01

young girls sharing

Keywords

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fig. 02

Morris Michtom (1866–1938)

fig. 03

Teddy Roosevelt’s Bear cartoon

by Clifford Berryman.

From The Washington Post,

O U R H I S TO RY

November 16, 1902.

our background ideal toy company was an american toy company that got its

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start with the iconic teddy bear .

1907–1997 A candy store owner from

partnered with competitors the

turn sold Ideal to Viewmaster

Brooklyn, by the name of

American Character Doll

International and renamed

Morris Michtom, was inspired

Company and the Alexander

itself View-Master Ideal in the

by a cartoon published

Doll Company.

process in 1987.

In 1968, the American Char-

The Ideal line remained part

in The Washington Post on president Roosevelt’s act of empathy. He, with the help of his wife, Rose, designed a new stuffed toy. They called it, Teddy’s Bear.

of Tyco until Tyco’s merger

bankruptcy, and Ideal acquired

with Mattel, Inc., in 1997. Then

the defunct company. In late

in 2003, poof Products, Inc.

1971, Ideal joined the New York

acquired substantially all of the

Stock Exchange; valued at $71

assets of Ideal Toy, located in

Teddy’s Bear took America

million, it was one of the U.S.’s

Ronkonkoma, NY.

by storm, and Morris went on to

top three toy companies.

found the Ideal Novelty and Toy Company in 1907.

By 1970, Ideal had outgrown it’s manufacturing complex

During the World War II, the

in Hollis, Queens. Trying to

company’s value rose from $2

maximize profits on the Rubik’s

million to $11 million, Ideal

Cube craze, in May 1981 Ideal

became the largest doll-making

filed civil suits against dozens

company in the United States.

of distributors and retailers

The company’s dolls were so

selling knockoff cubes. In

popular during the post–World

1982, the company was sold to

War II baby boom era, they

CBS Toy Company, which in

began selling dolls under license in Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Brazil. In 1951, Ideal

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acter Doll Company filed for

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ACADEMY OF ART UNIVERSITY

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fig. 04

Teddy Bear

fig. 05

Teddy Bear by Ideal

fig. 06

African American Betsy Wetsy

manufacturing unit

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LO G O E VO L U T I O N

by Ideal

our background as we move forward in reestab lishing our new brand identity, it is necessary to understand what

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has been left behind .

The evolution of our older

role of the oval shape in all the

identities will help us identify

previous logos – it represents

what was working successfully

connection and community in

and bring it into the new

an active space.

direction should we find an appropriate fit for it. We might also find an element which catered to Ideal’s soul that we would like to retain.

Ideal’s logo was fist designed in 1938 with the launch of the company. Overall, it went through four phases of changes, all were kept in a simple, word mark inside a shape. The first and the last logo established a visual connection between the letters ‘e’ and ‘a’ of the word Ideal. This element ref lects the brand’s original soul. We also identified the

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visual development guide

Ideal Toy Company’s first logo. The word mark is in script and enclosed within

1938–1952

an oval shape.

Ideal re-launched its second logo with a bolder, confident and a neutral face. The script word mark changed to sans serif type spaced out

1952–1955

within the oval shapes.

Within five years Ideal again modified its logo. The word mark became condensed and thinner and slight change

1955–1984

to the shapes.

Ideal once again changed the logo after it was sold to CBS. This time the logo lost its outer oval and integrated the shape within the type. The word mark became bolder, thicker and condensed. We also noticed the

1984–1997

connected letter ‘e’ and ‘a’.

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NEW VISION

nature of identity

fig.07

reflection of kids on water.

our background ideal wants to relaunch itself with a new vision of ensuring that every youth grows up fully developing his or her innate

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capacity for empathy.

A better world through the language of play.

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N E W G OA L S

our background we wanted to establish a few parameters to help guide our re - branding objective . these would help us stay focused on

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our core vision .

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Kids will be better leade followers, an most impor better friend

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Kids will be more likely to treat

Kids will understand the

the people they care about

unspoken parts of their com-

the way they wish they would

munication with others.

treat them.

Kids will be able to more accu-

Kids will more clearly

rately predict the actions

understand the perception they

and reactions of people they

create in others with their

interact with.

words and actions.

Kids will better understand the

e ers, better and rtantly, ds.

needs of people around them.

Kids will learn how to motivate the people around them.

Kids will more effectively convince others of their point of view.

Kids will experience the world in higher resolution as they perceive through not only their perspective but the perspectives of those around them.

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THE KEY WORDS

our background in keeping with our re - branding objective , ideal have identified a couple of concepts central to our future expansion , that capture

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the essence of our brand soul .

We identified three keywords which best represents our vision and how we want to be perceived in the future. Then we crafted short phrases to help us narrow down what those keywords mean to us.

These keywords are derived from the mission statement: A better world through the language of play.

The three keywords that emerged from the above mission statement were – inclusive, collaborative, and play. These keywords helped us start the process of developing our new identity.

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nature of identity

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Key phrase /

Key phrase /

Key phrase /

thrive together

free and easy

embracing differences

play

inclusion

collaborate

The language of play has always

We believe all kids are created

Ideal has always believed in the

been central to Ideal’s goal.

equal. Inclusive play allows

importance of collaboration.

The new Ideal wants to encour-

children of all abilities to

In the past it has collaborated

age a healthy play environment

grow together.

with designers and other

for young boys and girls that prepares them to be more aware about others and themselves.

Playgrounds are a place for laughter, friends and fun where all children and their families

toy companies to further their vision. New Ideal wants to embed this collaborative culture into its future vision.

Research shows, play allows

can play together regardless

young people to use their cre-

of their abilities. Our team

ativity while developing their

of designers can help you create

one” has been around for over

imagination, dexterity,

an inclusive playground

four centuries for a reason.

and physical, cognitive, and

environment that best fits

More effective problem solving

emotional strength. It improves

the unique needs of those in

happens when you combine

social skills as well, by helping

your community.

them to “learn how to work

“Two heads are better than

resources in talent, experience, finances and infrastructure.

in groups, to share, to negotiate, to resolve conf licts, and to learn self-advocacy skills.”

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Ideal re-branding process

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Logo Exploration Round 01 / Sketches Round 02 / Distill Round 03 / Initial Refinements Round 04 / Final Refinements

kids playing team fig. 08

building game

Logo Finalization

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Ideal re-branding process

R O U N D 01 / S K E TC H E S

logo exploration

this is to make sure that before a massive amount of time is invested in refining a solution , a direction is first agreed upon . sketching can start loose , begin ning with basic concepts . after we get a fix on basic direction , the concepts can be further refined

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with detailed sketching .

This primary phase began with sketches of free-hand logos using the keywords/phrases as visual queues. These sketches are divided into three categories namely symbol, abstract, and word mark.

During this process, we tried to explore many different options to identify the best possible direction.

This phase helped us to give form to abstract ideas we wanted to address in our identity.

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logo sketches for initial round

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INCLUSIVE

“It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength.”

— Maya Angelou, an American poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist.

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We started our sketches under our first keyword, inclusive.

To better visualize the concept we narrowed our direction on a key phrase (embracing differences) and used visual queues around it, that supported the key phrase. These were hug, embrace, brackets, connect, high-five, hands and so on.

visual development guide

Key phrase / embracing differences

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abstract representation of high-five.

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kids holding hand, unity, and acceptance.

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bear represents Ideal’s beginning.

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bear hug represents empathy.

connected letter ‘e’ 05

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and ‘a’ represents making connections.

hands hugging represents friendship and empathy,

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embrace is symbolic to acceptance.

brackets represents an inclusive environment.

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abstract two ‘i’ coming together to form a circle.

open arms symbolizes acceptance and embrace

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open arms symbolizes acceptance and empathy.

an extended hand represents friendship and inclusivity.

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CO LL A BO R AT E

“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision.”

— Andrew Carnegie, Scottish-American businessman, philanthropist

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Our next key word is collaborate and the key phrase (thrive together). We wanted to communicate that Ideal would facilitate collaboration among diverse groups which fosters empathy and team building. We used visual queues like cluster, overlap, intertwine, loop, petals of f lower, horizontal and vertical lines harmoniously arranged and so on.

visual development guide

Key phrase / thrive together

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abstract loop representing group of kids

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intertwined letter ‘i’ symbolizes collaboration

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intertwined letter ‘i’ symbolizes collaboration

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hands coming together for collaboration

rings represents 05

active energy overlapped harmoniously.

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overlapping ovals forms an ‘i’

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connected letter of the word Ideal.

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overlapping ‘i’ representing connections

horizontal and vertical 09

line coming together harmoniously

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an abstract loop of script uppercase ‘i’

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petals symbolizes kids, diversity, bloom

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abstract lines forming a protective environment

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P L AY

nature of identity

Key phrase / free and easy

“Play fosters belonging and encourages cooperation.”

— Stuart Brown, MD Contemporary American psychiatrist

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Our third most keyword is play. We wanted to capture the essence of free play opportunity that Ideal aims to deliver.

We used the key phrase (free & easy) to establish the direction we wanted to show. Visual queues like butterf ly, wings, pinwheel, bird were the starting point for this direction.

visual development guide

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pinwheel symbolizes childhood fun

wings, butterfly symbol of free play

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abstract collection of letter’i’ in a movement.

letter ‘i’ forming a butterfly

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graphic of butterfly and formation of letter ‘i’

abstract pinwheel with letter ‘ i’

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bird, wings symbolizes free and easy.

wings symbolizes free, easy and fun.

wings, open arms 09

and youth.

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an abstract representation of a youth with open arms

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an abstract representation of pinwheel

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bird with open wings represents free, easy and fun.

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R O U N D 01 / S U C C E S S

In this round we had few hits and misses with our logo direction. We started distilling our logo concepts that resonates most with the brand soul.

We realized that the keyword “inclusive� was not as successful as the other two.

The logo sketches under collaboration and play were more successful and after further review we distilled few possible direction to explore in the next round. We shall further refine these direction shown in this section.

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fig. 10

logo refinement sketches

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ROUND 02 / DISTILL

logo exploration

our further logo explorations are based on distilling , focusing and refining the logo concepts . in this round we are more concen -

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trated and less divergent.

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abstract group of pinwheels in motion

After the first review, we want to combine “collaborate” and “play” into one word would help us narrow our focus. So we combined these two words into “co-play”. Similar to our previous explorations here too we worked with visual queues like pinwheel, rainbow, spinning top, these were closest in repoverlapped letter of

resenting the concept of co-play.

This time we took our sketches

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to quick digital hybrids to get

the word Ideal to show collaboration

a better sense of angles, proportion and legibility.

However, we realized after several exploration that out of all the concepts, pinwheel captures the essence of the brand most harmoniously.

It represents childhood fun, collaboration, diversity, and energy.

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abstract letter ‘i’ in a form of pinwheel

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C O - P L AY

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spinning top symbolizes childhood fun

collaboration + play

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abstract rainbow represents diversity, fun and youth

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abstract letter ‘i’ as a loap symbolizing kids

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abstract origami paper pinwheel

rainbow represents band 07

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of different colors coming together

connected letter ‘e’ and ‘a’ represents collaboration

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abstract representation of a moving pinwheel

abstract variation in letter ‘ i’

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abstract pinwheel with letter ‘ i’

group of letter ‘i’ in pinwheel form

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abstract form of pinwheel

abstract pinwheel form to represent co-play

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Our new logo concept is pinwheel, which symbolizes diversity, potential, fun, collaboration and childhood innocence.

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ROUND 02 / INITIAL REFINEMENTS

logo exploration

we further explored our final pinwheel concept in this round . it was crucial to consider differ ent ways to design the pinwheel as our logo to best capture the

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essence of our brand .

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In the previous round we distilled our concept to pinwheel, which symbolizes diversity, potential, fun, collaboration and childhood innocence.

We explored pinwheel primarily under two camps–symbolic and abstract. We also tried few with the initial letter ‘i’.

Logo no. 07 with organic ‘i’ represents childhood innocence and a sense of spontaneity.

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We also picked logo no. 08 because the outer ring represents movement without confining the pinwheel graphic inside a shape. The outer ring provides an illusionary circle around the pinwheel arrangement. Logo no. 13, 14 and 15 were also be considered for further refinement.

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C O - P L AY

collaboration + play

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03

04

05

07

08

09

10

12

13

14

15

fig. 11

kids playing with pinwheel

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ROUND 03 / FINAL REFINEMENTS

logo exploration

this is the final round for the chosen direction . in this round we refine , combine and finalize the logo for further use . we also explored color options and

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word mark .

Logo Mark

Word Mark

We picked the logo concepts from

Along with the logo mark we also

Our color palette for our logo is

the previous round that had

explored options for the word

vibrant, youthful and captures diversity. We tried several

potential for further refinement.

mark to be used with or without

Based on our previous round we

the signature. Initially we tried

combinations but we finally nar-

further refined our logos

to show collaboration in the

rowed on the set of colors that

concepts around the pinwheel

word mark but in our final

closely represent pinwheel. Most

concept. We wanted to

refinement we made the word

color arrangements revolved

incorporate the letter ‘i’, sense

mark mimic the logo mark. The

around four colors, however the

of movement and childhood

word mark no. 09 looked most

logo mark no. 07 resonated most

innocense. Out of all the

appropriate for finalization.

with the brand essence.

exploration logo no. 12 emerged as the most successful.

We now finalize this mark with word mark and color combinations.

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Color

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LO G O M A R K

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02

03

04

05

06

07

08

09

10

11

12

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WORD MARK

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04

07

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modified Comfortaa with combined e and a

modified Monsterrat typeface with combined e and a

modified Gotham typeface that mimics the logo mark

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05

08

script typeface to represen

modified Futura round with e and a connected

modified Myriad Pro typeface that mimics the logo mark

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06

09

modified Akidenz Grotesk that mimics the logo mark

modified Akidenz Grotesk that mimics the logo mark

modified Gotham typeface that mimics the logo mark

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LO G O M A R K / 4 C O LO R

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02

03

04

05

06

07

08

07

08

09

09

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R O U N D 0 3 / F I N A L I Z AT I O N

fig. 12

pinwheel close-up (previous spread)

fig. 13

Final logo refinement sketch

logo this is our final logo for further usage . our new logo stands for collaboration , fun , energy, diversity, and childhood innocence . its an abstract representation of a pinwheel which encapsulates the

Ideal signature

Ideal logo mark

core essence of our brand .

Ideal word mark

exploration

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LO G O M A R K / P I N W H E E L

4 colors

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represents diversity

ring shows pinwheel movement

initial letter ’i’

circle represents community, active shape, holistic

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W O R D M A R K / G OT H A M M O D I F I E D

square reshaped to circle

serif added

serif added

serif added

square to curve corners

square to curve corners

square to curve corners

serif added

serif added

square to curve corners

square to curve corners

serif added square to curve corners

serif added square to curve corners

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Re-branding Research Similar Logos Brand Inspiration

fig. 14

diverse group of kids

Way Forward

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S I M I L A R LO G O S

re-branding research before finalizing our logo design , it is essential to conduct a visual research and study of other logos in the market that share elements similar to ours . it is also to make sure that our logos doesn ’ t already exist inside or outside our category.

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GlobalGiving / Crowdfunding Similarity: connecting people Difference: rigid & structured

Often, logos from two different sources look very similar and at times identical, even though with different meaning and purpose. As a part of brand awareness, it is necessary to present similar logos like ours and how we differentiate from those logos. We identified for each following logo one similarity and one difference in comparison to our new Ideal logo.

Alfredo Vidal / Travel agency Similarity / repetitive letter Difference / Initial letter ‘A’

Meseo de Ciencias / Museum Similarity: organic movement Difference: represents sun

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Huntsville Airport Authority

Manter Macmillan / Architects

Q-Psych / Psychology centre

Titan / Fasteners & Washers

Similarity: organic shape

Similarity: soft contours

Similarity: represents pinwheel

Similarity: repetitive letter

Difference: looks like leaf

Difference: square structure

Difference: looks like flower

Difference: Initial letter ‘T’

People Plus / Employment

Cecap Publicity / Advertising

Photolithographic School

Precision Tools

Similarity: represents pinwheel

Similarity: movement

Similarity: movement

Similarity: element repeated

Difference: Initial letter ‘p’

Difference: square structure

Difference: Initial letter ‘L’

Difference: Initial letter ‘T’

Radio ElPais / Radio station

Indelpar / Industrial Supply

Ziccardo / Air conditioning

Kentico / Online Marketing

Similarity: repeated elements

Similarity: initial letter ‘i’

Similarity: movement & organic

Similarity: circular movement

Difference: sharp & triangular

Difference: represents star

Difference: represents air

Difference: represents sun

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Chengage / Digital Learning

Children’s Hope / Non-profit

Similarity / abstract movement

Similarity / pinwheel concept

Difference / represents star

Difference / sharp edges

Chase Bank / Banking

E-trade / Financial Corporation

Similarity / elements repeated

Similarity / pinwheel concept

Difference / structured

Difference / hidden arrow

Google Nexus / Electronics Similarity / pinwheel concept Difference / structured

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fig. 15

B R A N D I N S P I R AT I O N

diverse group of kids playing (previous spread

re-branding research re - branding research would be incomplete without studying few successful brand guidelines out there . we reviewed several brand standards during our development phase to find inspiration for our

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way forward .

It is important for Ideal

Electrolux visual standards

Avoid too much information.

to comeback with a relevant,

guide is a 44 page document

It can be confusing and

consistent and a clear set of

with all the required informa-

often misleading.

guidelines in-order to have

tion very precisely organized.

a successful re-launch.

We have listed a few things that

We studied nearly 30 successful

we liked and would ensure in

visual standards guides, out

Ideal’s visual standards:

of those we found some more relevant and inspiring than the others. Electrolux, is one of them.

The brand logo evolution section is not clear and crisp.

Overall, the guide has simplicity and the amount of detailing feels just right.

We understood that a brand guide should have simple and relevant language for anyone to understand.

Every section should be clearly labelled with a brief introduction.

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Relevant examples are immensely helpful in visualizing a particular rule.

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E L E C T R O L UX / B R A N D G U I D E L I N E S

These are the a few selected spreads from the Electrolux brand guide that inspired us to plan our way forward.

It consists of brand history, logo usage, typography, grid, brand imagery, and brand colors.

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WAY F O R WA R D

re-branding research we now finalize our primary logo lock- up with the word mark and begin the way forward to the correct applications and standards

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of the identity we have created .

After identifying similarities and differences (visually and conceptually) between our new logo and others in the market, we know that our mark has not been done before.

A set of rules must be developed in order to maintain consistency and cohesive application across medium. These rules serve as a guide to ensure the identity is used with clarity and harmoniously. The next phase of our re-branding process is Visual Standard Guide.

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new Ideal logo application group of kids playing tough-of-war (next spread)

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“If we are to reach real peace in this world… we shall have to begin with children.”

—Mahatma Gandhi

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I M AG E S

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sources

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fig. 01

http://www.offset/photos/404716

fig. 02

https://www.google/teddybearcartoon

fig. 03

https://www.google/Teddy-bear-factory-1915

fig. 04

https://www.google/1200px-Teddy-bear-27

fig. 05

http://www.google/il_fullxfull.249502256

fig. 06

https://www.offset/photos/274352

fig. 07

http://www.offset/photos/463788

fig. 09

process image/sketchbook/initial

fig. 10

process image/sketchbook/refinements

fig. 11

https://www.gettyimages/180408846

fig. 12

https://www.gettyimages/165710208

fig, 13

process image/skechbook/final refinement

fig. 14

https://www.gettyimages/640203586

fig. 15

https://www.gettyimages/88452363

fig. 16

logo application image/emboss

fig. 17

https://www.gettyimages/481495699

visual development guide

DISCLAIMER This book is a non-commercial project for education purposes and is not intended to represent the Ideal Toy company nor brand.