The TJX Companies, Inc. is a US-based multinational off-price department store corporation. It was ranked No 97 in the 2021 Fortune 500 list. The range of the best-known brands operated by the company includes TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, and HomeSense, to name just a few.
The simple and eye-catching logo has been one of the key parts of the company’s success. It is memorable and recognizable enough, and it attracts customers. This was probably one of the main reasons why the TJX logo has been preserved virtually unchanged over its rather long history.
The history of the brand started in 1977, when the first two T.J. Maxx stores opened their doors in Auburn and Worcester, Massachusetts. However, it was only a decade later that The TJX Companies were officially founded. The brand was created as a subsidiary of Zayre, a discount department store chain.
In spite of the fact that Zayre stores had considerable operating losses, The TJX Companies subsidiary was still profitable. In 1988, Zayre sold all of its 400 stores operating under the Zayre brand and concentrated on The TJX Companies stores. Due to the investments it received, the stores proliferated across the country.
Soon, the TJX Companies logo became familiar in many corners of the US. One of the features that make the design so eye-catching is its color. Red has been proved to be a highly beneficial choice for logotypes and signs. This color has a stimulating effect on our cardiovascular system, for instance, and even can improve our mood, as reported by some individuals.
What is the TJX Companies
TJX is an off-price apparel and home fashions retailer based in Framingham, Massachusetts, U.S. By early 2021, it had over 4,550 locations in nine countries, not to mention its four e-commerce sites and 320,000 associates.
The austere sans serif typeface used for the lettering “TJX” also plays an important part in making the visual brand identity highly effective. Due to the fact that there are only three glyphs and that they are given in such a simple type, they are easy to spot from the distance. This attracts an additional number of consumers, including those who are just driving past.
The letters are placed very close to each other. If you take a closer look, you will of course see the white gaps between them, but they are very small. We can’t say there’s a lot of breathing space here.
On the one hand, this damages the legibility. And yet, this is just one of the factors that contribute to the compact size of the logo. It makes it easy to grasp at a single glance, including the cases when you just look around quickly.
Here, in addition to the abbreviation “TJX,” the full name of the company can be seen. It starts below the lower right end of the “X” and stretches to the left. It makes the logo less dynamic and sleek, and it adds some clutter, but this problem results rather from the long name of the brand than from a poor design decision.
The website icon showcases the abbreviation placed inside a rectangle. The glyphs are white, while the box is red.
The full TJX logo combines two typefaces. The one used for the large three letters is a simple sans, while the full name of the company features an italicized serif type.
The design has always featured a rather vivid and bright shade of red. There seems to have been some subtle modifications in the hue, though.