The stories of four famous logos
A $35 logo, a hidden arrow, and a smile from A to Z.
Four short stories about logos we see every day.
Nike
In 1971 Carolyn Davidson, then a design student at Portland State University, drew the curved mark known today and was paid $35. Years later the company gave her shares and a gold ring bearing the logo.
FedEx
The white space between the E and the x forms an arrow pointing forward. Lindon Leader designed it in 1994.
Amazon
The orange line under “amazon” runs from the a to the z, a nod to selling everything.
Coca-Cola
Frank Mason Robinson, bookkeeper to the drink’s inventor, wrote the name in a flowing script in the 1880s. The logo is still close to that version today.