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Before I did the obligatory Googling if you had asked me what Memorex does I would have said recordable CDs and DVDs, period. I would have never guessed that they also sell TVs, DVD players, and all sorts of other audio equipment. This is perhaps as much my fault for not staying on top of my consumer electronic brands but also a reflection of the saturation point that Memorex achieved with their ubiquitous packs of CD-Rs and DVD-Rs. This past September, Memorex — self described as “one of the most trusted and recognized consumer brands in modern marketing history.” — unveiled a new identity that, apart from signaling change it shifts its focus and attention to a female consumer.The S
Through research, we found that women were largely neglected by current electronics brands. Our specific target consumer is a savvy female shopper, between ages 25 and 44, who is constantly on-the-go and has an expressive sense of style.
— Press Release
Today Memorex will introduce a new signature, or logo, featuring simplified and solid lowercase letterforms that are friendly and approachable. The new Memorex signature features a circle icon or “o” as the focal point, representing connections between family and friends. This new signature embodies the three core elements of the refreshed Memorex brand personality: vitality, simplicity and connections.
— Press Release
With this strategy, the logo and the new packaging do feel like they fit the target very well. The packaging is softer and colorful and, to be honest, I (a guy) even prefer it to the old clunkers. The logo is nothing grand and the typography is a little excruciating to watch as no character has any relationship with the other, but it does achieve a mnemonic device to help distinguish Memorex — it’s certainly not the first logo to replace the “o” with something else, but in this context and for this brand it seems relevant. And in contrast to the old logo, which had a heavily techie feel, this change was extremely necessary to reach their desired audience.
Thanks to Peter Markatos for the tip.
Jump to Most Recent Comment
JP’s comment is:
Seems very clunky to me - the 8 circles look like 8 discs which is what they are trying to get away from so seems an odd choice - but I am sure overall it will help them branch their product range out.
On Oct.01.2008 at 07:06 AM
Remy Overkempe’s comment is:
Love the packaging, hate the new logo. The old one wasn't the best either, but this one is just bland.
"The new Memorex signature features a circle icon or 'o' as the focal point, representing connections between family and friend."
Really? How does it do that, please explain that to me. You'll get a cookie if you can, Memorex, but I bet you can't. There aren't even any real connections, because they are eight separate, independent circles.
On Oct.01.2008 at 07:18 AM
John McCollum’s comment is:
The packaging is clean and well-designed, but oh so boring. Combined with a non-memorable logo, the whole rebrand is remarkably unremarkable.
Now Memorex looks like one of a hundred other brands using the design language of Apple circa 2001.
Not bad, not great.
On Oct.01.2008 at 07:58 AM
JBIII’s comment is:
I like the new logo and packaging. (Except for the photo of the iWakeUp wrapping the corner of the box and leaving just the edge of the product on the side)
The circles do remind me of connections. I immediately thought of heads/bodies talking in a group and sharing information. The rhythm of the circles remind of a cd/dvd getting copied over and over as well.
As for being "clunky", I think that the way the logo is inserted into this post is cramping its style. Little more breathing room around it would help. It works nicely on their packaging and website.
On Oct.01.2008 at 08:06 AM
Willis’s comment is:
It needed an update... and they definitely got the "female brand" feel they were after. The logo looks like it should be on a box of tampons, or birth control.
This was the brand that showed the dude getting blown away by music. Classic. Not a fan of this direction.
On Oct.01.2008 at 08:49 AM
Josh’s comment is:
The "o" reminds me of a "waiting" or "loading" symbol but without the gradients. That's where my mind went first, probably because I also recognize memorex for their discs.
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:01 AM
JBIII’s comment is:
I believe Maxell had the "dude getting blown away by music." not Memorex?
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:05 AM
rickyaustin’s comment is:
It's an improvement, but it's a tad "me too!"
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:12 AM
Jonathan’s comment is:
You guys don't see it?!?! The top circle is the daddy circle, the one to right is his next door neighbor.... WAIT A MINUTE! "representing connections between family and friend." That is the biggest load of BS ever.
The logo is bland and the typography of the "signature" is just down right scary! The packaging is nice, but seems like a combo of iPod + Zune.
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:16 AM
Ben’s comment is:
the first thing i saw was a "birth control" logo
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:20 AM
John Mindiola III’s comment is:
um, yeah . . .
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:32 AM
Armin’s comment is:
> I believe Maxell had the "dude getting blown away by music." not Memorex?
Correct, Maxell was the dude getting blown away.
Memorex had Ella Fitzgerald breaking a wine glass.
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:35 AM
Paul’s comment is:
I’ve never heard of memorex. The old logo, to me, looks like a security company, or similar; with the swoosh/spotlight, and the bold, masculine font. The new logo does look like a consumer tech company, at least.
In forming the circle for the “O”, you kind of make the connections yourself, between the circles; which is kind of neat. But, the typography is awful the Ms look like eurostile (minus the stem), everything else looks like helvetica (or some other swiss font). Awful. it looks a little better at the tiny sizes on the image of the box —but it won’t look any better on the actual boxes.
The boxes, by the way, do seem like, as John McCollum said; Apple circa 2001; plus their “nanochromatic” branding. Which isn’t entirely a bad thing — they could copy from far worse sources.
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:45 AM
Ep’s comment is:
This new logo is terrible. They set memorex in Helvetica and then mutilated the m. It looks totally out of place and ridiculous.
On Oct.01.2008 at 09:53 AM
Dale’s comment is:
I think it's a nice update.
The logo seems too have to many individual elements, in my opinion.
I don't quite think the "m"s match the rest of the type treatment.
The letterspacing is a little too loose, I think - but perhaps that is because they most likely place it on very small products like flash drives and such - so the logo won't close up?
I think that the packaging is awesome. That will definitely pop off of a shelf.
Having been on the design team that was responsible for one of the Verbatim re-designs , the one thing they desired was to pop off the shelf in the sea of sameness.
I think this packaging might do that.
Keep well,
Dale
Dale’s comment is:
Heh,
meant to say:
The logo seems TO have TOO many individual elements, in my opinion.
coffee....where's my coffee...
Oisin ’s comment is:
Why not just go the whole hog and rename it "femorex"?. At least then the logo would match the name. Packaging is a bit predictable too.
On Oct.01.2008 at 10:17 AM
Peter Whitley’s comment is:
I disagree with Armin's comment that the letters have little relationship with each other. In fact, the first M has a very direct relationship to the second M. They might even be twins.
Overall I think the packaging redress more than the logo may help elevate its consumer electronics retail presence. It's encouraging to see "big companies" become sensitive to scale and tempo (and not just using white space because ... well, for whatever random reason).
On Oct.01.2008 at 10:18 AM
lodenmuse’s comment is:
Cute packaging, but even before reading these posts, I also was hit with the birth-control impression.
I can see the tv ad already... "Now it's easier not to forget to take your birth control... with new once daily (monthly/yearly) Memorex Tabs... Don't forget!"
On Oct.01.2008 at 10:19 AM
Blue’s comment is:
Well, I'm glad they did something with the logo - the old version was one of the few I'd regularly see and wince at - ugly as hell - italiccised, too high, vertically, not so much masculine as intellectually retarded and in just atrocious colours.
The new one doesn't entirely work for me in associating with what I percieve the company to be doing - CD/DVD media (I've never come accross their electronics) - but it doesn't offend me like their old, clunky, incompetent and ... hateful design.
I think I prefer it in the grey (seen on the packaging) rather than the orange.
On Oct.01.2008 at 10:29 AM
Austin’s comment is:
Personally, I don't dislike the original logo: I think it deserved tweaking and re-implementation rather than replacement. The new one is unremarkable IMHO.
On Oct.01.2008 at 10:50 AM
jRod’s comment is:
well, i really can't blame them for making the shift into the feminine market. consumer electronics is a HIGHLY competitive industry and to be able to pull a niche out of it would be very impressive.
all in all, i would say this is a significant improvement over the last brand, but nothing to get crazy excited over. i will say that it looks somewhat better in the grey that appears on the box, but not all that great in orange.
On Oct.01.2008 at 11:28 AM
Matt Hunsberger’s comment is:
"...lowercase letterforms that are friendly and approachable." I wish everyone would stop saying this. Such BS.
On Oct.01.2008 at 11:30 AM
sra’s comment is:
the first thing i saw was a "birth control" logo
Short of the colour, that was my first thought as well.
I like the packaging (sucker for bright colours on white), but that type is grating on me. I think it is the 'm's that are throwing me off, or at least their smoothness compared with the 'r's lack of.
On Oct.01.2008 at 11:55 AM
Austin’s comment is:
Personally, I don't dislike the original logo: I think it deserved tweaking and re-implementation rather than replacement. The new one is unremarkable IMHO.
On Oct.01.2008 at 12:13 PM
Mark’s comment is:
not bad.
Is it live or is it Memorex?
still can't get that slogan out of my head.
On Oct.01.2008 at 12:25 PM
Goffredo Puccetti’s comment is:
John McCollum’s comment is:
The packaging is clean and well-designed, but oh so boring. Combined with a non-memorable logo, the whole rebrand is remarkably unremarkable.
Now Memorex looks like one of a hundred other brands using the design language of Apple circa 2001.
Not bad, not great.
----------------
I quote every word above.
G.
On Oct.01.2008 at 01:22 PM
max’s comment is:
From a distance it's fine alright. But the closer I get to the logo the more it begins to look like mem rex. That perforated o don't sit right with me. It jus' don't sit right with me.
On Oct.01.2008 at 01:25 PM
Chris’s comment is:
The logo needs to rework the rest of the letters to fit the "m" and the "o", but that's been said.
The beauty is the repositioning of the brand to market to females. Genius! Apple (mentioned somewhere) took electronics to unisex, Memorex is taking it furter. I like the push and I can't remember another electronics brand that made this move. Great job to brand stategy.
On Oct.01.2008 at 01:33 PM
Nick Irwin’s comment is:
not bad didnt mind the old one but whateva
On Oct.01.2008 at 01:50 PM
dg3’s comment is:
Not great, but obviously better than the old one.
On Oct.01.2008 at 02:07 PM
mm’s comment is:
I'm still waiting for the image to load, all I see is an ajax spinner where the O should be...
On Oct.01.2008 at 02:18 PM
darrel’s comment is:
mem rex
On Oct.01.2008 at 02:23 PM
doogs’s comment is:
I agree with:
[ ...loading ]
Dusty’s comment is:
Looks really bland, all white, helvetica neue type... Looks like they just tried to make it a simple, clean look. Not bad, not great either.
On Oct.01.2008 at 02:44 PM
Shane’s comment is:
I'm not really sure what you mean by, "the typography is a little excruciating to watch as no character has any relationship with the other..."
I really enjoy the type and really feel it meets their primary goal of what audience they wish to reach. I am totally in the same place as you as far as thinking they ONLY did CD's and DVD's and other "memory" computer devices. I never saw them as an electronic company.
On Oct.01.2008 at 03:00 PM
Jeff’s comment is:
The typography is HIDEOUS. And the circle of family & friends? Puh-leaze. Crowd around the MP3 player at Thanksgiving, bring the fam together.
But nice packaging and colors. Even if they aren't entirely original.
On Oct.01.2008 at 03:13 PM
RR’s comment is:
Not bad. Instantly reminded me of the new(ish) Payless logo. I guess that's it . . . I really can add nothing else pro/con.
RR’s comment is:
Yeah . . . sorry about the supersized logo. I'm done internetting for the day.
On Oct.01.2008 at 03:51 PM
damon’s comment is:
the M's look out of place.
On Oct.01.2008 at 04:58 PM
rick’s comment is:
All this talk about the new logo looking like a birth control pill certainly does give new meaning to the phrase, "Is it live or is it Memorex?"....
On Oct.01.2008 at 06:25 PM
Von Glitschka’s comment is:
A new logo is born.
On Oct.01.2008 at 07:42 PM
RR’s comment is:
eamesorex?
On Oct.01.2008 at 08:43 PM
Matt’s comment is:
They got what they wanted: feminine, soft, and the rainbow colored type, o yay, I'm in heaven. Where are the unicorns to run by me? and the lepricons?
What a joke. The logo is horrible, typography: what happened, circles for 'o': sure, whatever you say.
The best part of all of this: their website, they must of forgot they changed the color to orange cuz everything is still blue.
mem......rex, HA
On Oct.01.2008 at 11:13 PM
T-Bone’s comment is:
Not great, but obviously better than the old one.
On Oct.01.2008 at 11:13 PM
stefano picco’s comment is:
Wow, this is radical, but a good choice. I like the new one!
On Oct.02.2008 at 03:56 AM
illusio’s comment is:
What's with the ginormous TM? The packaging is pretty decent.
On Oct.02.2008 at 04:04 AM
koyo’s comment is:
illusio’s comment is: "The packaging is pretty decent."
AGREE.
But the logo... mmm... mmm...
On Oct.02.2008 at 09:14 AM
Brad Blackman’s comment is:
"one of the most trusted and recognized consumer brands in modern marketing history."
This sounds bland and vague to me. You could say the same for Coca-Cola.
Otherwise, I think the new logo is OK. It was time for a refresh. Like Armin, I've always associated Memorex with blank CDs and tapes, etc. Hence the need for a more specific description if they're doing more than that.
On Oct.02.2008 at 09:55 AM
jean claude vanMammal’s comment is:
id like this better if the characters all had the same radius. the m -> e -> m -> o etc. looks speed-bumpy to me.
On Oct.02.2008 at 10:19 AM
Jonny’s comment is:
Looks like the "m's" are backwards for some reason.
On Oct.02.2008 at 11:35 AM
kellek’s comment is:
It looks like a tampon brand.
On Oct.02.2008 at 12:40 PM
Mark’s comment is:
the symbol reminded me of this
Mongoose’s comment is:
From a blue and yellow logo that got uglier the closer you looked at it, to an all-orange logo that.. er.. hmmm. I think this is the first time I've been glad for a big 'TM' that helps out a too-small 'rex'.
I must say that I think of Memorex as an data storage company over an electronics one; this new logo I think neither helps nor hurts that. It's new and lives in the now, but I don't know about the staying power. Trying for female appeal isn't a bad choice; to me the packaging seems like Walmart mechandise moreso than Best Buy.
Now, everyone seems to have missed that Memorex is a division of Imation, a former 3M division, which has this logo:
Now, the dots in a circle could be seen to spring from Imation's logo there, and I suspect we'll see a new logo from Imation at some point to incorporate further elements of that Memorex logo. Could be interesting.
B- for a nice new logo that suffers from ugly lower-case m, once more than it should.
--Mongoose
On Oct.02.2008 at 11:54 PM
AManda’s comment is:
I like the new logo. However, it is the rainbow skinny type on the packaging I could do without.
On Oct.03.2008 at 09:31 AM
Anon’s comment is:
Anon’s comment is:
designscene’s comment is:
yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawnnn.... where are all the 'real' logo designers gone?
On Oct.04.2008 at 06:08 AM
BruceS63’s comment is:
Von's version is exactly what I thought of after reading the rationale. This is the kind of work that put the "bla" in "bland."
On Oct.08.2008 at 10:17 AM
Simon’s comment is:
Both logos are underwhelming.
On Nov.16.2008 at 12:52 AM
Patrick’s comment is:
The new logo is a definite upgrade. The idea behind the "o" is good. I made the connection right away. Sitting in a circle. It's almost too universal. Too commonplace. But - it is a consumer brand set out to sell to the Business Depot/Walmart/Bestbuy shopper. Why complicate the look with a hard-to-understand-for-a-non-creative idea?
There is something needed in the typography. Its not quite there. But it's not horrendous. The M's look like Eurostile, copied, flipped backwards on top of themselves, then intersected with the "scraps" trimmed out. To that extent, I'm not sure why the designer did not continue with his modification through all of the characters in order to keep the radius of the bowl and counters similar.
I love looking through the portfolios of the people who bash these new brand unveilings while offering no real insight. It is obvious that the whole "throwing of stones vs. glass houses" cliché has been lost on a few...
On Nov.16.2008 at 10:30 AM
Kelly Hobkirk’s comment is:
Von's version is tons more well-thought-out. Thanks for the laugh.
Who is memorex?
Nah, really, I always thought Maxell won out betwixt the two in the riveting, wildly competitive top-end cassette tape market.
No, really, the old Memorex logo was just plain ugly and seemed to position the company as yet another blank cd-rom manufacturer. This new logo would be heaps better if the typography had been professionally designed. As it is though, it just sucks. It would have been so simple to either create a custom typeface or leave the durned m's alone. The sad thing is that no one except us designers and typographers will ever know that, so this sad execution of a logo will live on for many years without ever being fixed, representing a company that may or may not deserve what it got.
And, it looks like it belongs on a tampon or pregnancy test box.
On Nov.16.2008 at 07:11 PM
Kelly Hobkirk’s comment is:
I mostly like the new packaging, even if it is circa Apple 2001. Wrapping the product photo over the seem is, um, interesting.
On Nov.16.2008 at 07:16 PM
Adam thinks he knows’s comment is:
is it just me or does the two "e"s on the new logo look weird?
On Apr.30.2009 at 03:46 AM
Comments in Brand New, V1.0 have been closed.
