While Fujitsu was founded under the name of “Fuji Electric Limited,” its original logo (1935) featured the letters “f” (for “Furukawa”) and “s” (for Siemens – the first syllable sounds as “Ji” in Japanese).
The history of the Fujitsu visual identity can be divided into two main parts — the Japanese period, and the global one when the company expanded to the international markets. Though the very first emblem for the brands which was used for almost thirty years featured a completely different idea and essence.
The initial Fujitsu emblem, introduced in 1935, was composed of an intertwined monogram enclosed in a circular frame. The thick black lines of the image had their ends rounded, which balanced the shape of the frame and added delicacy and elegance to the whole identity. The letter “F” in the badge was written in lowercase, with its vertical line curved from up and down, and resembling the contours of the “S”.
The redesign of 1962 completely changed the Fujitsu visual identity concept. It was a rectangular badge with a strict straight frame and the name of the company in Japanese placed in the middle of the emblem and two additional inscriptions, set on the frame. The upper line consisted of hieroglyphs, while the bottom one featured “Communications and Electronics” in English and was executed in fancy cursive.
In 1972 the color palette of the Fujitsu visual identity was switched to red and blue. The name of the company was still set in Japanese and placed between two bold blue horizontal lines. The new emblem looked like a flag and evokes a sense of power and professionalism. It stayed with the brand for more than a decade and was the last logo version with the nameplate in hieroglyphics.
With the redesign of 1988, Fujitsu got its new logo which became iconic and stayed untouched for more than thirty years. The new emblem featured a capitalized serif inscription in a scarlet red color with a fancy curved line above letters “J” and “I”. The line resembles a letter “S”, placed horizontally, and adds more elegance and style to the whole image.
The red and white color palette of the Fujitsu logo evolved from the color palette of the previous visual identity version, taking the best of it and celebrations Japan and its national red and white flag.
The bright shade of red featured on the Fujitsu logo is supposed to symbolize the company’s enthusiasm for the future, brightness, and approachability.
Although the wordmark has been probably drawn by hand, its typeface resembles the Friz Quadrata No2 D font. The letter “U” is different, though.