Parliament is a brand of tobacco products, established in 1931 in the USA. The cigarette label is a part of the Philip Morris Group and is being distributed worldwide.
Parliament is considered to be one of the most expensive cigarette brands worldwide. It is famous for its recessed filters, which allow feeling the pure tobacco taste.
The Parliament’s visual identity is based on a principle of minimalist luxury. It is composed of a wordmark with an emblem, which takes the biggest part of the packaging.
The Parliament wordmark is executed in a custom modern sans-serif typeface with arched top lines of the letter and a slightly elongated tail of the first “P”. It looks sleep and elegant in the navy blue color.
The iconic Parliament emblem is a vertically oriented rectangle which is diagonally split into two equal parts — light blue on the left and dark blue on the right. The separation line is white while the emblem’s thick outline is colored silver.
In the upper part of the emblem, on the light blue background, the brand’s symbol is placed. Composed of a three-dimensional silver tick with a white “P” on a red oval above it, it looks like a heraldic symbol, adding a high-end and even Royal feel to the overall logo concept.
The lettering on the Parliament logo looks very refined without sacrificing legibility. If this wordmark could talk, it would probably say “understated elegance.” It only reveals itself when you take a closer look and notice the softened tops of the “P” and “R,” the elegant thin serifs, the slight difference in the thickness of the strokes, etc.
In contrast to the discreet wordmark, the emblem seems rich in detail. You can compare it to medieval coats-of-arms or royal symbols. The crown only reinforces the impression.
That said, we should also mention it is reminiscent of a human figure (the ends of the “tick” are the legs, the oval is the head with the hair and crown).
Quite often, the packaging has featured a rectangle consisting of two triangles, a dark blue one and a light blue one. The dark blue triangle probably symbolizes the unfiltered smoke, while the light blue triangle represents the filtered smoke, thus implying the quality of Parliament’s filters. The diagonal line has been used to break down the rectangle into the two fields.
Also, you can now often see the packages where the rectangle features only a single color but the diagonal bar is still there.
Sometimes the “tick” has been paired with the words “Recessed Filter,” while other versions of the Parliament logo have featured the text above the rectangle or below it. This has been an important part of the product’s brand identity as the recessed paper filters are supposed to let the smokers fully experience the flavor.