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The 7 Best and Worst Logo Redesigns of 2014

Creative Market Last updated: March 29, 2024 · 4 min read

2014 has seen a lot of new design trends crop up. Whether brands are redesigning their image or going for entirely new branding ventures, there have been some exciting changes in the world of design. Here are some of the best and worst redesigns the year has seen so far.

Airbnb

Airbnb has been one of the most quickly growing companies on the market. Since their inception, they have been steadily gaining favor in big cities and small towns alike for offering a friendly and affordable alternative to hotels. It’s been a pretty sweet situation for the company, until this year when they redesigned their logo into something that resembles pretty much any private part you can imagine. The company was very invested in the logo, but the new “Belo†logo has received a ton of backlash from folks who think it doesn’t quite live up to the company’s family-friendly reputation

airbnb logo

Foursquare

Fourquare changed its app and whole design in July and in doing so managed to upset much of its audience. They were criticized for changing their logo into a completely unrecognizable format – users wanted them to at least continue using the same color scheme but they decided to take a completely different route. Only time will tell whether it will work out for them or not!

foursquare logo

Black + Decker

Black + Decker (which was formerly known as Black & Decker) went through a super suave and sophisticated redesign this year. They wanted a fresh and edgy new look and went with the well-known, New York-based design firm Lippincott to help them get an edge on the market. They did a great job with the redesign and ditched the old, hardware-store type feel of the former logo in favor of a simple, clean typeface and a modern + sign instead of the ampersand.

black & decker logo

Visa

Visa may be a household name but that doesn’t mean that they don’t need to update their brand now and then. This year they did just that, changing both their logo and their tagline. The former tagline was “for everyone, everywhere†and the new one states: “It’s everywhere you want to be.†The new logo loses the yellow edge on the top of the V and goes for a darker, bolder blue color in order to simplify and rebrand itself.

black & decker logo

Fitness First

This fitness club that launched in the early 90s was in dire need of a new logo – they hadn’t had an update in over 20 years. They decided to upgrade the old navy blue, cursive logo for the first time and came up with a new look that incorporates a trendier, blockier design and a bright red color scheme. The new image suits their powerful brand and offers a more consistent tone of voice than the slight, feminine cursive they were using before.

fitness first logo

WWE

The wrestling franchise known as WWF came out with a new logo in August of this year in hopes of revamping their dated 1980s look that included scratch lettering with a red pen swirl underneath. They took a drastic change and came out with a slick, lightening-like silver W with more of a Nike-style swoosh of red underneath, set on a black background. The slick and shiny aesthetic already looks a bit dated in a time where most companies are abandoning these effects in favor of a flatter look.

fitness first logo

Tamba Bay Buccaneers

The NFL is a prime source of constant brand updates. In 2014, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers smoothed out the rough edges on their pirate flag and skull. The new logo features a brighter red and a more modern vector art look. They’ve lost some of the vintage appeal, but the new look definitely meets the “bolder” goal they were shooting for.

fitness first logo

What Did We Miss?

This is a small selection of the many major brands that have updated their look so far in 2014. Leave a comment below and let us know which logo refreshes come to your mind and what you thought of them. Also be sure to include your thoughts on each of the logos above.

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29 Comments
  • Anonymous
    Visa's new tagline is "Everywhere you want to be"-shortened from "It's everywhere you want to be." They dropped the "it's" in favor of a wider meaning. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Good list. Major League Soccer recently did a major overhaul of their logo and branding system. Some others: PayPal, Reebok, and Fandango. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    And let's not forget Olive Garden! 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    @Jonathan Lefrancois Olive Garden would've been a perfect addition! Good one! 11 years ago
  • Matt Borchert
    I remember seeing a lot of flack in the past about Black + Decker switching up their iconic logo, but I really love the re-brand. I always thought the old logo gave a sense of "bargain brand" in comparison to some of their competition, and the re-brand gives me the sense of a strong built to last product. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Can the Visa logo really be considered a "redesign"? I also do not like Black & Decker's new one. The old one worked, so not sure why the change was needed. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Personally, I like the new design for the Air BnB logo, guess it just depends on which way you want to look at things. I've Seen a wide range of comments about this redesign so I'll prepare myself as best as I can for the responses haha ! 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    I like the Air Bnb one, too @Jerome Collinge :D 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    @Matt Borchert I love the Black + Decker rebrand too! I agree it evokes quality. Maybe it's a personal preference (it normally is, huh?). 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Huge feeling of relief that I'm not alone with this one haha ! - [@Antoinette L.](user:370632) 11 years ago
  • @Matt Borchert @Jonathan Lefrancois I like the new Black+Decker logo as well. Plain sans-serif text in a rectangle usually earns a "you were just being lazy" scoff from me, but this one comes out looking clean and stylish. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    I really enjoyed this thank you and I have to say I did LOL at the airbnb example...! 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    I really like the new Black + Decker logo. The "old" WWE logo was used for the "Attitude Era" (1997—2001). The one used back in the 80's was even shinier. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    @Josh Johnson but the little affair the 'k' and the '+' are having is pretty beautiful. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Fitness First made me think of the Formula1 logo instantly, still different enough I guess. I like the other changes of the logos... Foursquare is the only one I'm not entirely sold on. Something about the 'Q' bothers me, perhaps it's the thickness of the tail which sticks out. AirBnB and Black&Decker are my favourites of the lot. And I didn't once think of any private part looking at it..*shrug. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    @Jonathan Lefrancois wow, can't believe I missed that. Superb. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    I LOVE LOVE LOVE the new Foursquare brand! Love the font, especially the Q and the angles on the F and E, and I love the simple, flat pointer icon. Perfect! Black + Decker? Really? Ugh. 11 years ago
  • FilterGrade
    Interesting how styles of design change over time. As much flack as "flat design" and minimal style gets, it is definitely a common theme. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    somehow i kinda like WWE new logo though.. 11 years ago
  • Love it simple and clean logo 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    I like the new WWE logo. Most of the other logo updates were pretty cool. I'm unsure about Airbnb new symbol... didn't make sense to me. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Nice read. Love the Black + Decker redesign. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Great article, very interesting. I am surprised everyone loves the new Black and Decker one.... to me the "+" makes it look more suitable for first-aid or plasters... and that is exactly the opposite image a "secure" tools company would like to give. 11 years ago
  • Anonymous
    Let's not forget the difference between lightning and lightening. I think you meant the former (a powerful, sudden flow of electricity accompanied by thunder) in the description of the new WWF logo. 11 years ago
  • Just a few others to add to the list: Paypal, Netflix, and the LCBO (the latter of which was somewhat controversial, at least in Canada). 11 years ago
  • Most likeable for me is Black & Dekker :) 11 years ago
  • No to Airbnb. I hate the new colour they choose and I don't like how the logo is seperated from the text. I would like it better if it was like this: http://i.imgur.com/ThFlLDK.png 11 years ago
  • The new Airbnb logo is AWFUL! hate it! I can never find the app on my phone because it's just not recognizable anymore. I miss the old logo :-( 10 years ago
  • TAMPA Bay, Not TAMBA Bay. :) 10 years ago