9.19.2010

CFP: Adidas Logo History

Designer Bio:
Adidas was designed and founded by Adolf (Adi) Dassler from Herzogenaurach, Germany in the 1920’s. Dassler combined his nickname ‘Adi’ with the first three letters of his last name Dassler to name his company and he decided to use a lowercase ‘a’ for the company’s name to distinguish it from the competition. However, before Adi Dassler created adidas he and his brother Rudolph Dassler, who would later move on to form Puma, created Gebruder Dassier OHG (Dassler Brothers Ltd) on July 1, 1924. The Dassler brothers were never satisfied with the fit of their sport shoes so, being the sons of a cobbler, they began making their own. Their shoes began to gain a reputation and were so successful that they supplied shoes for the German teams in the 1928 and 1932 Olympics. Then in 1948 a dispute broke out between the brothers so they decided to go their separate ways and create their own successful empires. A year later, Adidas added the legendary three stripes to their trainers to strengthen the shoe and provide more stability to the foot. Adi Dassler's goal was to provide every athlete with the best possible equipment. The three stripes represented his three guiding principles: design the best shoe for the requirements of the sport, protect the athlete from injury, and make the product durable. Both adidas and Puma were gaining a reputation overseas and began distributing their products in the United States. In 1972, both Joe Fraizer and Muhammad Ali wore adidas boxing shoes in their ‘fight of the century’, which was a landmark event for adidas. Later in that same year, adidas was named the official supplier for the Munich Olympics and created their famous trefoil logo.

Dassler Brothers Ltd.

 Company Analysis:
Adidas Company is the second largest sportswear manufacture in the world, specializing in sporting gear and all sporting related products. The company’s current logo with the three parallel stripes was designed by the Creative Director Peter Moore, and alludes to a mountain indicating the challenges to be faced and the goals to be achieved. The three stripes also represents Dassler’s principles: design the best shoe for the requirements of the sport, protect the athlete from injury, and make the product durable. The trefoil logo, which was adopted as the corporate logo design in 1972, is now specifically only used on the company’s heritage products. The three leaves of the trefoil logo symbolizes the Olympic spirit, linked to the three continental plates and the company’s diversity as well as the heritage and history of the company. The black color of the Adidas logo comes as an inspirational motif to the youth importantly involved in sports and athletic activities, reviving their spirit and bring upon a striking youth culture. Like the design, the font of the logo is simplistic yet memorable and prominent with its simple style. Adidas continues to follow the tradition by maintaining the simple yet innovating design.

Color Standards:
Pantone Matching System -  Black
CMYK - 70, 45, 25, 100
RGB - 0, 0, 0

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