Hovis resurrects iconic ‘boy on the bicycle’ for revamped logo

Premier Foods is introducing the “boy on the bicycle” from its iconic Seventies ad as a key part of its logo for the first time.

The move is part of a £15m overhaul of the bread brand, which will also see the relaunch of the “little brown loaf”.

The new logo is part of a major overhaul of the packaging across all Hovis products, which has been handled by design agency Jones Knowles Ritchie.

The boy icon sits inside a “little brown loaf” shape and uses the same typeface that will be embossed on the loaf. The new packaging will be introduced from the third week of August.

Different colours are employed across half of the loaf to differentiate the type of bread, for example Hovis uses yellow and brown for wholemeal, with the other half of the loaf visible through clear packaging. JKR founder Andrew Knowles says it aims to be “humble”, but show that Hovis is confident in its product.

The revamp comes after Premier has reformulated all of its products, which it has been rolling out since May. Hovis marketing director Jon Goldstone is overseeing the changes and has also moved the brand’s advertising from McCann Erickson to Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy. He joined in February from Walkers Snacks, where he was vice-president of marketing. A new campaign is due to break in September.

Goldstone says that the relaunch aims to remind consumers about Hovis brand values, as well as to highlight the changes in product quality and its health credentials.