1 – Vectors of Branding
Vans is an American manufacturer of skateboarding shoes and related apparel, based in Santa Ana, California and owned by VF Corporation. The company also sponsors surf, snowboarding, BMX, and motocross teams.
Four Vectors of Branding:
- Product: Vans is a product led company, specializing in apparel and footwear. They are known for their “skateboarding” style of clothes.
- Environment: Vans create their environment in the form of stores and online shops. Where they sell a wide range of their products including shoes, tops & trousers, underwear and backpacks.
- Communication: Vans makes itself known threw its social media accounts (instagram, facebook, snapchat etc.), events and also sponsored athletes/teams.
- As seen above, Vans sponsor many Skateboarding/BMX events, as well as sponsoring individual athletes, surfers, skateboarders, bikers and also some hip-hop artists. This is an effective form of Endorsement which many companies do to display their brand to the general public.
- Vans also communicate with its audience through Posters and advertisements online
2 – Brand Architecture:
‘Vans’ would fall under the category of ‘Endorsed‘. It was has multiple identities through a variety of products.
Vans often collaborate with other companies/artists to create new products. This is what makes it an ‘Endorsed Brand’. These endorsements include the likes of Disney, David Bowie, Marvel, NASA, StarWars, Harry Potter and other fashion brands. These Collaborations allow Vans to reach out to all types of people.
Vans Corporate Identity
Vans Official 24 Page Brand Book
3 – Brand Redesign / Refresh:
The Vans Logo has not changed much over the years, but a few key design elements are always included. Its “Off the Wall” slogan calls attention to the company’s athletic ties and quirky background.
The current logo for Vans (See Above) is a combination of a brand name and a slogan. At the top of the logo is a wide, red rectangle that is a slightly warm, orange-ish shade. In white capitalized letters, the name “Vans” is spelled out within the rectangle. The V is slightly larger than the other letters, and the right point of the V extends in a horizontal line that tops the rest of the letters.
Beneath the rectangle is a set of quotation marks that contain the phrase “Off the Wall.” The brand slogan is written in black, but it is written in the same font as the rest of the logo. This all-caps, san-serif font features thick lines of a consistent width and few curves.
Evolution:
The modern day Vans Logo is very similar to its original logo tag that showed up on their first few pairs of shoes. That showed the brand name in a rectangle without the “off the wall” motto. In 1976, this was changed to a logo that had the brand name and motto inside of a stylized Skateboard shape.
Though the popular vehicle logo still shows up on some Vans merchandise, the company decided to switch their logo to the simpler rectangular design of modern times because it appeared more modern than the skewed 1970s style drawing.
Font:
All versions of the Vans Logo have used a thick, bold, capitalized san serif font that extends the V in a line above the rest of the letters. This font is a customized modification of Helvetica that was first developed in the 1950s and became wildly popular for advertising in the 1970s.
4 – Company CEO & its Brand:
Vans is owned by VF Corporation, which is a worldwide apparel and footwear company founded in 1899. VF Corporation also owns The North Face, Timberland, Wrangler, JanSport and many more.
Steve Van Doren:
But, Steve Van Doren, son of Paul Van Doren (the Co-founder of Vans), is the CEO of Vans and has been doing his part to ensure his family’s namesake sneaker lives on for decades. In a recent Interview with ‘CEO’s You Should Know’, Steve described himself as a ‘Big Kid’. He is a smiley, chatty, floral shirt-wearing man who is clearly extremely dedicated to continuing Vans already great legacy.
Steve, like the company itself, seems very free-spirited and outgoing and he clearly adheres to the company brand.
5 – The Core Ideas / Values:
Core Values:
As stated in their Brand Manual, Vans’ Core Values are as follows:
- “We are DETERMINED. We have the Van Doren spirit. We’re scrappy and resourceful. We use ingenuity to tackle every challenge head on and find a path forward, even if it may not be a straight line.”
- “We are CONNECTED. Culturally, digitally and socially. We build meaningful and lasting relationships with our consumers, customers, partners and family, where ever they may be.”
- “We are INCLUSIVE. We invite unique perspectives and value different experiences. We want to hear each other point of view.”
- “We are Vibrant and EXPRESSIVE in how we speak, interact and get our jobs done.
Sustainability:
As well as their Core Values, Vans promise there commitment to Sustainability. On their Brand Manual they state:
“As a supporter of Youth Culture, it is integral that we protect the planet and its resources for future generations. Our Sustainability scheme embodies everything we believe in and furthers our mission by supporting music, art, and action sport programs through monetary and in-kind donations and volunteering. We are proud of our attempts to reduce the environmental footprint of our operations and products – ‘Vans Sole‘, our Environmental program, demonstrates how we do it…”
Green Sole Operation:
Mission Statement:
Target Audience:
Vans have admitted that their primary target is Young Male Boarders (Skater, Bikers, Surfers), but in recent years their audience has broadened due to their casual, comfortable and practical products.
6. Brand Manual Analysis :
Vans Official 24 Page Brand Book
Key Feature of The Brand Manual:
Position:
“At Vans our culture sets us apart and it influences everything we do. We are a Leading action sports brand who provide Artistic individuals the opportunities to embrace the Off The Wall attitude through wearing our Authentic, Performance Based and Fashion Forward products. Unlike our competitors, we integrate ourselves into the action sports lifestyle and youth culture that our consumers live by; we promote the very music, sports, art and street culture that matters the most to them. Nike stands for athletic performance, we stand for creative expression.”
From this graph it is clear that Vans see themselves as affordable yet high performance and comfort.
Logo:
“The Vans Logo is an integral component of our visual identity as we are constantly attempting to keep it relevant. Out current logo resonates with previous logo variations and is a combination of our Brand name and slogan.”
“Some key design principles are always present, all versions of our logo use a thick, bold, capitalized sans serif font that extends the V in a line above the rest of the letters.”
Font & Color:
I love the Vans Font, it is simple yet effect. I will definitely consider it when designing my own logo.
My Brand:
Logo Name Ideas:
- PQ Design / Visuals / Creations / Graphics
- 3 Peaks Design – something mountain themed
- Wicked Tongue
I want my logo to represent me as a person. I think the ‘PQ Design’ etc. is too generic, a lot of designers use their initials for their logos.
I like the sound of ‘Three Peaks Design’, i think it has a nice ring to it and it would be cool to do something mountain themed. I feel that would best represent me, adventurous, outgoing, playful, yet professional and creative.
‘Three Peaks Design’ Initial Sketches:
Illustrator Versions:
I think these two versions are the strongest but i will continue to experiment with logo.
Illustrator Versions:
Color Variations:
Finished Logo / Brand:
After playing around with color palettes, i felt that this was the strongest logo. It is the cleanest and most effective logo for my brand.
Brand Manual:
After completing our logo we where asked to create a Brand Manual. This would include descriptions of my logo, colour palette, typeface, Do’s and Don’ts as well as Stationery (Letter head, business card, compliment slip)
Paul Quinlan Graphic Design 