After a recent lecture on Brand identity, I decided to look in more detail at the visual identities of well known fashion brands, to take note of the way they present themselves to the public, and the way design is used to communicate their brand values and style.
Firstly I looked at Zara. Their logo is distinctive, using an elongated serif typeface. Each letter of their logo is made up of a combination of light and bold lines, and the characters overlap so that each letter is connected. This logo was introduced in recent years to give the brand a more modern appearance. Letters are closer together, and the Z and the R have curved accents unlike the previous logo.
The logo reminds me of fashion magazines such as Vogue and Elle which use similar typefaces for their covers. This indicates that Zara are aligning their image with well respected fashion brands, and making their identity more sophisticated.
Their website has a very contemporary feel, with a clean monochrome design to compliment their artistic photography of products. Their logo matches the balance between a relaxed but formal style that their products display.
Although still a more accessible high street store than designer brands, their identity gives the brand a more elegant appearance than that of Primark for example, whose image is less focused on a particular aesthetic, and have built their identity on value for money, ‘throw-away fashion’ items.
Less accessible, designer fashion brands, have an even greater focus on their identity. For example, Chanel still produces variations of their trademark Chanel suit, and use of bouclé fabrics which they are known for, as well as featuring their logo across their products, as their history and best known styles give their brand its authenticity and appeal.
Similarly, Louis Vuitton feature their logo in the form of a pattern across all their products, so customers buy their products for the branding as their luxury image makes their brand desirable.
Perhaps this example shows that a good brand identity and consistent feel across products and platforms can encourage customer loyalty and willingness to pay more for a brand which they perceive to make products to a higher quality, or that they feel is more authentic/ethical.
I also looked at Asos’s brand identity as they are a completely online store, so their website design is a huge focus for how their image is conveyed, as there is no store to provide atmosphere or a physical customer experience.
Their target audience is young adults, which is reflected in the design of their website. Their logo uses a sans-serif font, similar to Helvetica, with closely joined letters. This choice of typeface reflects a more relaxed identity, and the bold graphics and use of colour used on their packaging and website create a fun and modern appearance.
Their logo is not used on their products, so customers don’t buy for the label, but their contemporary design appeals to their audience, and loyalty is built up by the customer experience.
This research has highlighted some of the different ways fashion brands use design, whether that is focussed on their logo and packaging, or website design, to convey the tone and values of their brand.
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