Leatherman New 2019 Logo

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RevolverGuy

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Aug 19, 2015
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Looks like Leatherman has changed their logo for 2019. It's already on their website. In my opinion it feels like a step backward. Hard to tell that L is suppose to be a multi-tool. Much prefer the version used before. What do you guys think?

 
RevolverGuy said:
Looks like Leatherman has changed their logo for 2019. It's already on their website. In my opinion it feels like a step backward. Hard to tell that L is suppose to be a multi-tool. Much prefer the version used before. What do you guys think?

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The old one is better.
 
My guess is that Leatherman may be positioning themselves to be a brand of more than pliers based multi tools. Of course that is what they will most likely always be known for, but they also do minis, wearables, knives, and have dabbled with flashlights and the like.

Think of it this way, a Logo is the representation of your brand. However, sometimes a name is brand in of itself. When you say "Leatherman" what do you think of? If I handed you a small cardboard box with nothing written on it but "Bandaid", you could probably guess what it is inside. However, Leatherman is more than just folding pocket tools.

I don't really love the new logo, but if I were positioning myself to make sure that everyone knew my company made more than pliers based tools, I might change it...or at least if I were head of the marketing department I might consider presenting the idea.
 
Old >> New.

When you think of LM, you think of pliers based MTs. The new logo doesn't reflect that imo.
 
Steely_Gunz said:
My guess is that Leatherman may be positioning themselves to be a brand of more than pliers based multi tools. Of course that is what they will most likely always be known for, but they also do minis, wearables, knives, and have dabbled with flashlights and the like.

Think of it this way, a Logo is the representation of your brand. However, sometimes a name is brand in of itself. When you say "Leatherman" what do you think of? If I handed you a small cardboard box with nothing written on it but "Bandaid", you could probably guess what it is inside. However, Leatherman is more than just folding pocket tools.

I don't really love the new logo, but if I were positioning myself to make sure that everyone knew my company made more than pliers based tools, I might change it...or at least if I were head of the marketing department I might consider presenting the idea.
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If this is the reason, it makes sense... Otherwise, I think that the older looks better because it identifies what the company is about. Even if they are positioning themselves as a company beyond just plier-based multitools, then could have picked something a little less vanilla than an 'L'.

All of that said, I care about the brand only insofar as what that tells me about the likely quality of the tool. Thus, personally I don't care what logo/brand they use!
 
Leatherman puts out a good product and I've grown to really like their use of the logo with the iconic yellow packaging. A logo does matter. Not so much for someone who has been buying their tools for a long time, but for someone who may be purchasing a Leatherman for the first time, they'll be comparing logo/packaging/price/options to whatever else is on the shelf.

Logos are what appear on apparel and merchandise. A lot of us go beyond just wanting to own a multi-tool or knife. We end up proudly showing others how much we support a brand. We buy and display logo t-shirts, hats, stickers, etc. I know I have a few.

Their competitors like Gerber, Victorinox, SOG, have all had logo updates over the years. When I compare this logo to what those other companies have done, it feels like a missed opportunity.
 
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From a marketing a logo design view it is a great improvement as the previous logo is dated and busy. I'm not saying I like one over the other or that I even like either. I can say from research I have done and articles I have read when I was looking into the possibility of having my own business that the new logo is what the current market needs. I suspect it might be a step in evolving their logo and branding so we may see some more changed coming in terms of their logo and other brand design aspect.
 
As a person who does some graphical designing every now and then (I do more layout) it feels like what companies want with logo/visual changes is some sort of timeless minimalism, but sometimes it goes over the top and just becomes ugly and just lazy. When simplistic logo has to be made, there is a fine line between the logo becoming just plain or genious. I think the new logo is just lazy.
 
The new logo looks like the MT opened in the pliers configuration with the head facing down and the grips forming the L, but that's just what I'm seeing.
 
The new logo sucks, it's like McDonald's getting rid of the golden arches.
When I look really hard at the L i see an old Gerber MP, but otherwise it's hard to make the connection at all that this is supposed to be a multitool.
 
Who cares? No offense to the OP but I purchase products based upon their quality, not their logo. If the company offers a quality product long enough, then, and only then, will the logo represent a company with a good reputation and decent products. Leatherman has done that so I don't see the new logo as a big deal.
 
sabre cat said:
Who cares? No offense to the OP but I purchase products based upon their quality, not their logo.
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No offense taken. I posted this in hopes it would make an interesting thread discussion. I get tired of always seeing the same "look at my knife" or "look at this new knife model", or "I just got a knife" threads. There are hundreds of thousands of those on here. It's good to sometimes talk about other areas in the knife industry. Marketing and design are part of those.
 
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sabre cat said:
Who cares? No offense to the OP but I purchase products based upon their quality, not their logo. If the company offers a quality product long enough, then, and only then, will the logo represent a company with a good reputation and decent products. Leatherman has done that so I don't see the new logo as a big deal.
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I am with you on this one! I don't really see what difference the logo makes in purchasing decisions. I don't know why they changed it, but I don't really care, either!
 
Daniel said:
I am with you on this one! I don't really see what difference the logo makes in purchasing decisions. I don't know why they changed it, but I don't really care, either!
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I can't say that I've always been like this. I remember when I was younger, brands and logos were everything.

I remember a time my daughter wanted a new phone. She was pushing for a certain brand that was very popular at the time. I explained that I was willing to purchase brand X even though she wanted brand Y and if she was going to dig her heels in over it, she could buy her own phone. She "settled" for what I was offering but, I could tell she was not happy about it. Three weeks later she told me that she loved her new phone and it was superior to what she had wanted. All of her friends had the other brand and they were having QC problems.
 
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