From 1960: Record Source, Inc. by S. Neil Fujita

Record Source International was an American music record distributor that provided records and singles for radio stations. The records were chosen from all major labels in cooperation with Billboard magazine.

The company was launched in 1960 as Record Source, Inc., as a division of a company called Scott-Textor Productions under the leadership of former Columbia Records executive Hal B. Cook. "International" was added to the name two years later.

A quirky logo designed by S. Neil Fujita could be seen in ads as early as June 1960. While Fujita did design some trademarks, he is best known for his covers for Columbia Records, including Dave Brubeck's Take Five. It is conceivable that Fujita had worked for Cook while at Columbia.

RSI was primarily in the distribution business and didn't generally publish their own records. The only known record published by RSI appears to be "Pronouncing the Classics" from 1962, which, as the name suggests, contained pronunciation of 1200 names of foreign artists and composers as an aid to American disc jockeys. S. Neil Fujita also designed the cover of that record.

Win Win – new name for sustainability award

Win Win Gothenburg Sustainability Award is an award given to "outstanding achievements towards a sustainable future" by the City of Gothenburg, Sweden. It was known as "the Gothernburg Award" until May this year when it introduced a new name and visual identity by local agency Happy F&B.

The name "Win Win" was chosen for being memorable and expressed a positive vision for sustainable development - that of creating win-win situations. The logo is an expression of "give and take" and is therefore constantly moving as a sort of visualisation of trade-offs.

Lippincott creates Versant Health brand for eyecare company

Superior Vision and Davis Vision are two American companies providing "managed vision benefits", managing optician products for people who get their healthcare via their employer. Last year, they combined their operations and in May they launched a name and visual identity for the combined company, Versant Health, created by Lippincott.

The name Versant reflects "experience and conversational approach", with "Health" added to firmly base the company in the health market and not a separate eyewear market. The symbol consists of radiating spokes that make up an abstract iris.

From 2017: Idents for Viasat Nature by WeAreSeventeen

Viasat Nature is a nature TV channel available in several territories, mostly in Europe. Last summer, the channel launched a set of six new channel idents, commissioned from London-based motion studio WeAreSeventeen, with sound design by Echoic.

The old idents, introduced in 2014, featured fairly basic shots of landscapes. The new ones are more conceptual, turning the N in the logo into a portal that brings animals into the TV screen. The animals and their landscapes are created entirely using realistic computer graphics.

Flowing symbol for Stockholm Exergi

Stockholm Exergi is the energy utility for the city of Stockholm, Sweden, owned jointly by the city and energy company Fortum. It was known as Fortum Värme until January this year, when the new name was adopted. It reflects the fact that the city had recently increased its ownership stake in the company, which necessitated a distinction from its former majority owner (Fortum). "Exergy" should convey how the company uses the maximum amount of energy, a term borrowed from thermodynamics.

The brand identity was developed by Brand Union Stockholm, which apparently managed to escape the creation of Superunion earlier this year. The symbol is inspired by the pipes through which heat is delivered. It can also be animated to visualise the flowing heat.

Logo round-up: July 2018

July included a fair bit of notable rebrands, including the redesign of the Rolling Stones masthead, Michael Bierut's modular look for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, PwC spin-off Guidehouse, rebranded French athletics, the world's leading margarine conglomerate and many more.

A premium look for Nestlé Extrême ice cream cones

Extrême is Nestlé's brand for ice cream cones, sold in several countries. Earlier (probably the past spring), the brand launched a new look, created by Logic Design.

Nestlés wanted to stave off competition from cheaper rivals by positioning Extrême as a premium product. The new packaging is slightly darker with a stately ice cream cone on the packaging.

From 2000?: Danish Defence by Ole Søndergaard of 11Design

We recently noted that the Danish Ministry of Defence had launched a new identity programme at the beginning of the year. A key component of that programme had clearly been to leverage the recognisability of the existing symbol for Danish Defence, which includes Denmark's army, navy and air defence. It therefore deserves a bit more time in the spotlight.

The Danish Defence symbol was designed by Ole Søndergaard, one of Denmark's many influential graphic designers, while at 11Design, a design agency he co-founded in 1985. According to Søndergaard, it was designed in the year 2000 (I haven't been able to confirm this independently).

Inspiration came from the coat of arms of 14th century king Valdemar IV as well as Trelleborg and Fyrkat, two circular Viking age fortifications. Ironically, the symbol for the Danish defence is partly based on something they failed to defend, as the Trelleborg is now located in Sweden. The three wedges can also represent the three branches of Denmark's defence.

Abstract satellite for Russian TV operator Tricolor

Trikolor is one of Russia's satellite TV platforms, operated by the "National Satellite Company". It was known as Trikolor TV, until yesterday (August 15) wen it rebranded itself with a neat new logo.

The old logo was a more literal illustration of a satellite, which was relevant went the company went into business in 2005 as a satellite company. In recent years, the company has expanded to other platforms. "TV" was therefore dropped from the name and the satellite was changed into a more abstract symbol that retains familiarity in shape and colour, but is more "modern and expressive". The changes reflect the company's tagline "Your Entertainment Environment Operator".

Blue logo for Dutch TV channel SBS6

SBS6 is one of the leading commercial TV channels in the Netherlands and the flagship channel of Talpa TV (formerly known as SBS). On August 1, the channel launched a refreshed logo.

The previous logo featured the number six in a circle, as does the new one in a slightly different juxtaposition. It is credited to Bob van der Put, who was reportedly also one of the "spiritual fathers" of the old logo. Other than the altered logo, the big change for SBS6 is that the channel's colour switches from red to blue. This is all said to be part of a "careful repositioning" of SBS6.

Interbrand rebrands Brazil's Suvinil paint

Suvinil is one of Brazil's leading paint manufacturers and a subsidiary of BASF. Back in May, it launched a new brand identity, created by Interbrand São Paulo.

The refreshed Suvinil wants to be more personal, pressing the fact that painting your walls can be an extension of your personality. Part of this was creating a more "conversational" brand, turning the packaging copy into a platform for storytelling. The new logo preserves the brand's identifying colours, but puts them in a layered symbol, representing "the connection and transparency of Suvinil with the stories of its costumers".

Pentagram ups the pace for Korean pizza

PizzaUp is a new pizza restaurant chain, launched in October last year in Korea. It is owned by food conglomerate SPC Group which operates numerous fast food chains, including the Korean branches of Shake Shack, Baskin Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts. The visual identity was developed by Angus Hyland of Pentagram in London. They recently published the case study for their work with this new chain.

Pentagram came up with the name, which is both a call to action and an abbreviation for "unique pizza". The simple combination of lines and grids in the logo is repeated in all aspects of the identity programme, including icons and packaging.

Interbrand brands Italy's rail travel app Nugo

Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, Italy's railway operator, launched a new travel app back in June. It is called Nugo, a name and brand developed by Interbrand Milan.

Nugo is not only a travel booking app, it is a way for FS Italiane to "accelerate the group's strategic pathway towards redefining the mobility experience", which means they want more Italians to take the train and leave their cars at home. The big innovation seems to be that you can now book tickets that in addition to trains also include buses, ferries as well as car and bikesharing.

The basic concept for the brand is "living mobility". The name is a combination of "new" (nouvo?) and "go". The logo is made up of circles, with extra circles on each side as wheels, representing mobility.

Unilever's margarine spun off as Upfield

One of the largest deals in the history of margarine was revealed in December last year when Unilever announced that they would spin off their "Spreads" business which they had built up since the consumer goods conglomerate was founded in 1930. The "Spreads" business included margarine and other "plant-based nutrition".

The sale to investment firm KKR was finished on July 2, when the new company also announced its name, Upfield. It is operating in most of the world and includes over 100 brands, including Becel, Flora, Country Crock, Blue Band, I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter, Rama and ProActiv.

No explanation of the new name or the symbol was provided at launch. The leafy/watery "swoshiness" in the symbol is a bit reminiscent of other contemporary food conglomerate logos (Mondelez, Keurig Dr Pepper, and Unilever itself), so they clearly wanted to be seen as friendly and natural.

Loan service Lendo sets new logo

Lendo is a loan mediation service available in Sweden, Norway and Finland. It was founded in 2007 and is now a part of Norway's Schibsted Media Group. On June 19, the company introduced a refreshed logo as it prepares to enter more European markets.

The new branding was developed in-house at Lendo, with help from a consultant specialised in frontend and UX design. The vague diagram from the old logo has been replaced by a dynamic speech bubble that can contain things worth aspiring to have. The design process was guided by "simplicity, modernity and seriosity".

DixonBaxi makes Fox Sports NL the true home of Dutch football

Fox Sports in the Netherlands is a sports TV service, controlled by Fox Networks with the Dutch football clubs as minority shareholders, offering full coverage of Dutch football. When it launched in 2013, it used branding and graphics assets designed to work for many sports across international markets. As the channel matured it felt it needed a look that was tailor-made for the football-heavy Dutch version of Fox Sports. In July, it launched a new look created with London-based DixonBaxi.

The new Fox Sports is more clearly positioned as the "Home of Dutch Football". The international Fox Sports logo was cleaned up a freed from its bevels and gradients for a flatter look. The tactical theory of "Total Football" is used as inspiration for a square grid that allows text to move on screen in interesting ways. The custom typeface "Sparta" has designed by Ondrej Jób as a monospace font that fits with the square grid.

Kontrapunkt unites the Danish Ministry of Defence

The Danish Ministry of Defence, or Forsvarsministeriet started 2018 by introducing a common visual identity across its activities, including Danish Defence, which includes the army, the navy and the air force. It was designed Kontrapunkt, who've designed plenty of identities for the Danish government over the past two decades. They created a system that allows the individual units to express themselves while also showing them as part of a collective.

The new logo for the ministry is simply a newly designed royal crown, with the name set with lettering designed for the ministry. The crown has been designed to stands for "decisiveness, solidity, security and professionalism". It replaces a more cumbersome conceptual logo.

Danish Defence keeps its previous symbol, but updates it with the new crown and the custom lettering. The other branches are the Home Guard, the Emergency Management Agency and the Defence Intelligence Service. They have been given new symbols built to suit with the new identity programme, while also retaining some ideas and heritage from the symbols that they replace. The new lettering is designed to be both solid and open. It also follows Danish typographic tradition, which Kontrapunkt takes the role of shepherding.

PR firm Buchanan rebrands itself

The multinational PR firm Bell Pottinger went under scandalously last year. This meant that many people not involved in the scandal lost their jobs, including those employed by Bell Pottinger's design department, whose projects have been featured here before.

Former Bell Pottinger employees Kerrie Palmer, Neil Stockwell and Rob Boles were hired by another agency, WPP-owned Buchanan, as their new design department. They set about giving their new employer a new website and a new visual identity. This enabled them to both familiarise themselves with their new colleagues and apply their skills to help the company.

Dragon Rouge rebrands French athletics

The French Athletics Federation (Fédération française d'athlétisme, or FFA) is the governing body for French athletics. On July 4, it launched a new identity with a new name. The body will now be marketed as "Athlé" with a fresh athletic brand identity designed by Dragon Rouge.

According to Dragon Rouge, the new branding "outlines the history, the power and the universality of athletics". At its centre is a dynamic logo with a distinctive H in the middle, that can resemble hurdles, bars or other sports equipment.

From 2017: Maximized look for TV3 Max

TV3 Max is a new Danish TV channel launched last autumn (on October 31, 2017) as an off-shoot from the Danish commercial channel TV3. It replaced the broadcaster's second sports channel, TV3 Sport 2, and sits along side the main TV3 channel, TV3 Plus, TV3 Puls and TV3 Sport.

The graphics package was produced in-house at MTG Creative in London (now renamed NENT Creative Studio London).

Even though it replaced a sports channel, the new channel is still quite sports heavy with a lot of football. It also features plenty of comedy. Overall, the content skews male which is reflected by action-oriented graphics in a rugged grey-orange colour scheme.

GasNatural Fenosa becomes Naturgy, with simplified butterfly

Gas Natural Fenosa is a major Spanish energy company with activities in Europe and Latin America. On June 27, it changed its name to the more ownable and less cumbersome Naturgy.

According to a press release, the new name "represents the energy of our nature, as well as a digital and global company that works to improve the lives of people through simple and natural technology". Visually, the butterfly that used to represent Gas Natural has been streamlined and simplified as a less "natural" abstract shape.

New signature for premium Kellogg cereal

Kellogg's has a new line of vegan and organic cereals that has been rolled out in Europe under the brand "W. K. Kellogg" (no genitive). It stands out for the fact that the packaging dispenses of the traditional Kellogg's branding with a more illustrated look and a completely redesigned version of the traditional Kellogg signature. The packaging is adapted from a very similar design made for Kellogg's Australian cereal brand Be Natural in 2016. That packaging was done by Sydney-based Loop Brands, who are also behind the new W. K. Kellogg signature and its European adaptation.

Loop Brands worked with typographer Keith Morris to create a new signature inspired by Kellogg's heritage. The new brown colour departs from the previous red, establishing W. K. Kellogg as a separate "signature" line.