Logotype 1.0 - HMV

So far, our briefs have been group orientated which was a good way to see how people work and the style they like. In this project, I get to work solo which I am excited about but I need to think about time management. The brief is to create a new logo for a shop of my choice. The shop has to be an international brand in Leeds so to begin with I went into town to see what shops I could rebrand using typography. 

Being in town allowed me to see which shops stood out over the others. I found that the colour scheme of the type/symbol, along with the size, was important for catching the eye. This technique allowed me to distinguish the successful logos.

I will need to think about the size of the overall piece so that it works on a large and small scale. Depending on what company I choose will determine what sizes I will think about. A clothing store's type logo will need to work on a large scale for the entrance but also needs to work on the clothing labels. 

After walking around the centre of Leeds, I decided to choose HMV as my business to rebrand. I have a passion for music, especially having a hard copy of it, whether that's CD, tape or vinyl. Since big companies such as Spotify, Deezer and Apple make streaming and downloading music so fast and easy, HMV are being left behind. It is the same with film and gaming. Before the huge online streaming sites such as Netflix and PS3/Xbox, people had to go into store to buy it. 

Why I Chose HMV

The first HMV was created in 1921, London. I am surprised at how old the company is because ever since I've known them, they've always had a modern feel to them. This could be a good concept to change because they go so far back in history and have so much musical culture behind them. They've sold music in a huge number of formats from the sheet music, early gramophone 78s to today's digital downloads. This is a business that has been in the music industry for a long time and I could use that to my advantage. Until 2010, HMV reported a £40 million loss from their shops and online sales. They also had 400 stores but that has been reduced to 210. Personally, I think that they have more of a future in music rather than film and game. Recently, they've released a new side to their shop and gone back to their vinyl roots. In the UK, sales in vinyl last year increased by 52%. 3.6% of all albums sold in 2014 were on vinyl. To compare that to 10 years ago in 2004, just 0.2% of all albums sold were vinyl. There is a clear trend that vinyl is becoming more and more popular. HMV are slowly introducing more vinyl into their stores so I am suggesting a new type logo that will represent the future business. 

When I was walking around the shop, I took in my surroundings. I wanted to feel what the shop was like by observing the staff and seeing the type of people that shop there. I found the music section was the most popular area of the store, I watched to see which media they bought. Most of the customers were looking at CDs, however there was a lot of interest with the vinyl considering there was a whole room full of CDs and a limited amount of vinyl. The music that they were playing around the store was a mix of genre and generation. I thought this was a sensible and safe option because they attract such a broad range of people, all with their own music taste. 

Further research into the companies website, I learnt that they used to have a lot of signings and gigs in their shops. Artists such as Kate Bush, Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Beyonce, Amy Winehouse and the director Quentin Tarantino. This is a shame that they don't do as many of these anymore but after further research they are beginning to do more signings with acts such as Foals. I could use this music heritage to my advantage with my logo. 

Vinyl is becoming even more popular, it definitely attracts a certain audience. Most vinyl stores are privately owned and have an edgy, 'cool' feel to them in cities such as Leeds, Bristol and Manchester. The HMV stores that I've been in, along with their logo, seem very dated. I think it should be rebranded to bring up there traditional routes, especially with the rise of vinyl. Feedback from members of my course, they didn't even know HMV sold vinyl. Having a traditional, smarter logo would encourage people to shop there. 

The HMV Logo

I was extremely surprised when I began to research into the logo. HMV stands for 'His Masters Voice' after the painting by Francis Barraud:

When Barraud's brother died he played a recording of his voice on the phonograph. His dog Nipper immediately went to the phonograph and listened intently for his master. Hence the name of the painting. This explains why they have a jack russel as a symbol. HMV bought the painting, in 1899, and used it for their first logo and name.

The logo changed drastically to a modern concept: 

The dog and phonograph has been kept, however it has been taken out of context. I don't like this concept as the colour scheme is too vibrant and pushy with the detail of the painting. Another aspect of the design I don't like is the highlight marks on the tops of the letters. Personally, I think it looks cheap and too digitalised. The vibrant fusia pink sans-serif is too 'in your face' especially capitalised and following the classic style of 'His Masters Voice'. I understand that the market and target audience must have been changing but I think they could have kept a traditional style because this doesn't represent the company. 

The logo was kept the same for a long time, until the company made it look more contemporary in 2013: 

They've kept the sans-serif font but created a calmness using lower case. The kerning is very balanced which makes it harmonious. I like how compact it is and the way the 'v' is hovering above the 'm'as the negative space is the same as between the 'h' and the 'm'. I think this is a good example of kerning and I want to be able to use it in my work. The colour palette is better than the last one because of its solid, bold type that's extremely prominent on the white background. The curve on the letters is much smoother which gives it a friendly feel. 

I am pleased I have found this information and I am excited to begin experimenting with different concepts after my site visit and research. My initial ideas want to reflect the musical history of the company so that it can keep growing and avoid losing more money.

Target Audience 

HMV appeals to a wide range of customers due to the plethora of stock they have available. Music, film and gaming are their three main categories, all with a huge variety of stock. This will attract a lot of different people from different backgrounds, music/film/gaming tastes and age.

I will need to think about where the logotype is going to be displayed. HMV sell online and in-store so I will need to see if it would work online and in a range of scales. 

Initial Influences

Air Bnb

The rebrand for Air Bnb was created by Design Studio, who worked very hard to explore Air Bnb as a business. They interviewed staff and travelled around the world to get a feel for how the company works and it's aims. Here is a video by AirBnb introducing the new logo and showing how objective the symbol has become.

I like how the how the concept is clear and the symbol is so functional and versatile. This is a good example of how Design Studio used the time with their clients as an advantage to learn as much as they could and I think that's why it's so successful. However, without watching the video it wouldn't be as clear.

Dalius Stuoka

 

Stuoka is a graphic designer from Lithuania who specialises in typography and logo identity. He was asked to create a logo for a company called five locks. I immediately spotted the locks made out of the 'o' and the 'c' but Stuoka has ingeniously rotated the number 5 and still represents the name of the brand. The simplicity of the idea meant that all that was needed was a bit of clever kerning to create negative space and balance the type out. I need to explore the simple concepts, especially when working with type because it doesn't need to be over complicated.