Sunkist: new logo…or is it?

Sunkist has recently announced its new logo, above, but that may not save the orange soda’s deeper branding issues or help it beat key competitor Fanta.

First, let’s compare it to the old logo:

The left is a US can, with a Chinese can on the right. Already you can see the split in branding. It’s not entirely a bad idea – the font is easier to read and the logo shows what’s in the can.

The brand is aimed at young people, mostly college age, hoping to tap into surf culture.

The problem with this is that the Sunkist name is used for other things, too…

Primarily the name is associated with more premium, adult goods – navel oranges and other fruit/nut products. It might have been convenient to use the Sunkist name in 1978 when it was used for soda drinks under licence, but now neither product line is going to do the other any favors.

There have been comparisons between this logo change and the redesign by Fanta earlier this year, but the fact remains: it doesn’t matter how your logo looks or if you make people Feel All Orange Inside (TM), if your brand message isn’t consistent you’re behind from the start.