The IWC brand was founded in 1868 under the name of the International Watch Company. Its founder was Florentine Ariosto Jones, a talented watchmaker.
Taking into consideration the long history, it’s only natural that the IWC logo has gone through so many alterations. As far as it’s not a pictorial but a wordmark logo, these modifications concerned only the typeface.
On the original wordmark, which was in use for as long as almost a hundred years, the first line (“International Watch”) was set in a refined handwriting-style script. By contrast, the second line featured a bold Roman type with pronounced, clear serifs.
When the original text was replaced by the words “IWC Schaffhausen,” they were both given in one and the same Roman type.
The current IWC logo is a combination of two typefaces, each one of a completely different style. The lettering “IWC” on the top features a classic Roman font with serifs. The word “Schaffhausen,” which can be seen below, is set in a simple sans serif font. Both the types have a contemporary look.
The timeless elegance of black and white is the coloristic base of the emblem. We should point out, however, that IWC, like many other watch manufacturers, tend to modify the color of their logo depending on the watch face on which it appears.