The color scheme and the unusual “N” make the Stanley logo distinctive and memorable without being overloaded with details.
Meaning and history
The history of Stanley Hand Tools, a US brand of hand tools, started in 1857. Stanley merged with Black & Decker in the spring of 2010.
1857 – 1955
1955 – 2013
By the mid-1950s, the company already adopted the legendary black-and-yellow logo inspired by the battery shape. The battery was black and housed the name of the company in yellow. The writing featured a static, rather bold sans serif type, which could be interpreted as a visual representation of the reliability of Stanley’s products.
You can still come across this version on some older products.
2013 – Today
This version was developed by Lippincott and introduced in June 2011. The designers managed to modify the logo without completely losing its heritage. Due to this approach, the logo stayed recognizable for the customers.
To begin with, the original color scheme was preserved. Yet, now, the colors were reversed: the black was used for the lettering, while the yellow moved in the background. The shape of the letters remained pretty similar with a couple of subtle modifications. The distance between the letters grew a little larger. The most notable modification was probably the new “N” – due to the gap, it adopted a unique touch making the design recognizable. The battery theme disappeared from the Stanley logo.