Who Shot the Serif?

Luxury designers have made one thing clear in the world of logos. Out with the serifs, in with the sans.

In a paradoxical world where luxury brands founded on originality and couture culture opt for design homogeneity, one would be forgiven for asking, “who shot the serif?”. 

From Prada and Balenciaga to Dolce and Gabbana, a consensus exists among the houses. Modern utility, versatility, simplicity, and legibility reign supreme. 

Where French luxury house CELINE’s former logo featured an accent on the ‘E’ and breathing room between letters, a minimalist typeface now stands in its wake. 

As for Gucci, Chanel, Burberry and their designer counterparts, utilitarian principles eclipse those of aesthetics for advertising purposes. 

Jacob Cass, founder of Just Creative, links the emergence of monochromatic, flat versions of sans-serif fonts to the return of minimalism in 2010 and the cultural zeitgeist of the time. 

“In the world of logos, this translates to logo fonts that look more similar to one another than their elaborate script or serif predecessors ever could… you’re left with a sense of sameness.” - Jacob Cass, Just Creative.

Meanwhile, others credit the preference for stripped-back typefaces to Bauhaus Modernists, who likened ornamentation to symbols of bourgeois oppression.

According to David Rudnick, graphic designer and typeface specialist for names like Nike, the phenomenon of the ubiquitous sans-serif rebrand reflects a break from tradition and the birth of something new. 

“What’s happening is the removal of these labels as the lineage of one creative individual,” he says, “they are transforming them into global brands.” 

In an industry known for outlandish campaigns, where Bottega Veneta can stamp its logo on The Great Wall of China, the preference for logos with simplified and balanced proportions reflects the commercial realities of the 21st Century.

Unrestrained in their application across mediums, sans-serif logotypes make for versatile brand markers.