Gap’s logo fiasco smacks of a put-up job to fuel publicity

While it is important to demonstrate a willingness to listen to your customers, typical “big brand behaviour” involves a certain confidence and strength of image. It does not involve making a complete U-turn in a matter of days over something as crucial as a brand logo, just because of some negative comments online.

The new logo looked uninspired. Subsequently opening the floor to disapproving customers and using crowdsourcing to design a new logo seems an odd decision, and one that has met with some adversity in the design community.

I find it hard to believe that Gap could make all these fundamental mistakes without good reason,and the word-of-mouth and international press exposure the brand has enjoyed since would suggest that this was Gap’s plan all along. If so, the brand played it brilliantly.

Phil Dean, Managing Director of Creative Services, Communisis