Pepsi's new electric rebrand, pays homage to the almost 125-year-old soda giant.

Ahead of its 125th anniversary, the international beverage firm PepsiCo has said that it will modernize the logo for its signature soft drink. The new logo, which replaces the one in use since 2008, has a large “PEPSI” in the middle of a black circle with red, white, and blue stripes surrounding it. The old logo had a globe with more subdued colors and the word “pepsi” in a leaner font.

Mauro Porcini, chief design officer at PepsiCo, said that the new logo was intended to exude “great vitality, confidence, and aggressiveness.” The new logo will be introduced by the corporation this fall on “electric” blue and black cans and in marketing campaigns in the United States and Canada. It will then be used internationally starting in 2024.

Over the past few years, PepsiCo has started to reevaluate its branding strategy with a focus on blending components from its vintage labeling with strong, modern design features. The previous logos, which had the word “Pepsi” enclosed in a globe, were well-liked by focus groups, according to Todd Kaplan, the company’s chief marketing officer. According to consumer research, those Pepsi logos from the 1970s and 1980s are preferred, suggesting an implied connection to the brand’s history.“The challenge was: How can we take something that was part of our heritage and our past and project it to the present and the future?” Kaplan said. To achieve this, the new logo fuses traditional design components with contemporary color and style.

The new logo’s color scheme of richer “electric” blue and black is now used on Pepsi Zero Sugar cans. According to a press release, the business intends to apply this color palette throughout the portfolio to give the brand’s appearance “a contemporary edge.”

The vivid animations in movies and online are intended to use the new logo as well as delivery vans, hats, and other items. It lends itself to artistic interpretations that emphasize the brand’s dynamic and vivacious personality. It resembles a badge that you may put on clothing or equipment, but Porcini claimed that it adheres closely to the most recent developments in visual communications.

The new logo and cans are shown emitting waves of energy, sound, and light in the introduction video, highlighting the brand’s ties to music. Music “is in the DNA of the brand,” claims Porcini. The new logo’s versatility is also essential in a market that is very competitive and dominated by businesses like Coca-Cola. According to Euromonitor International, PepsiCo has a 22.9% share of the total volume of soda sales in the U.S., while Coke has a 43.4% share.

According to the market research agency, Coke’s market share has climbed from 42.7% in 2021, while Pepsi’s share has decreased from 24.2%. According to Porcini, the new logo might give PepsiCo a significant competitive advantage in this situation by bringing “fresh energy” and “endless potential and opportunities in licensing in the worlds of music and in sport”.