So we are driving home from a wonderful night in Bethesda Maryland, got thirsty and stopped at a Sheetz for a “refill.” Much to our surprise we came across the new Pepsi can and logo design. Hello?! What is going on here? I’m not quite sure what to think. The last logo update in the mid 90s was good. It was more of a refresh and hipster update. The new 2009 update looks more like someone in marketing said, “i’m sick of the logo, everyone is doing a refresher… why not us too?” Folks, you can’t just update a logo to update a logo.
Is Pepsi smiling?
The text (font) is a throwback to the mid-80s “diet pepsi” look. Like everything, that style has somewhat come back into “vogue” but not for Pepsi. Yes, this look is much cleaner and more streamlined -I’m all for that- but the update looks forced. The famous RED/BLUE/WHITE swoosh is the biggest change. Throughout the years it has had various treatments, but the concept was still the same. Now, the whole design has been turned on its head! Am I the only person who thinks it is smiling?
Pepsi has always been the hipper brand when it come to the fight between Coke & Pepsi, but they big mistake you make when trying to be hip is maintaining your legacy. Staying true to your heritage, especially when you’re a heritage brand, is probably (above all) the most important thing you can do. I think Pepsi’s new look will not sell more soda, nor will it inspire faithful coke drinkers to make the leap.
Congrats Pepsi — you’re hip. But you’re still not #1. For advice on how to keep that #1 spot for more than a century look at Coke’s new logo… wait, they don’t have one.
I should note, I’ve always preferred Pepsi.
