TUI is a brand of multinational travel and tourism company, based in Germany. The broad portfolio of the company consists of tour operators, 1,600 travel agencies and online portals, 6 airlines with around 150 aircraft, over 380 hotels and 17 cruise liners in all major holiday destinations around the globe.
Meaning and history
Tui is a world-known group of companies, one of the leaders in the global travel market. It owns travel agencies, hotels, airlines, cruise ships and tour operators. The company was officially founded in 2001.
In fact, the history of the company began much earlier when the Prussian Joint Stock Company for Mining and Foundry (Preußische Bergwerks- und Hütten-Aktiengesellschaft) came into existence in 1923. Five years later it merged with the then famous coal company and several joint stock companies connected with the power industry. And Preussag AG was created.
And in 1968 four German travel companies – Touropa, Hummel, Scharnow and Dr. Tigges – merged to form Touristik Union International, TUI for short.
After many mergers and resales, since January 2000, TUI Group becomes the travel division of the restructured Preussag AG.
Now TUI is more than 1,600 travel agencies and leading online portals, six airlines (totaling about 150 planes), more than 380 hotels and 16 cruise ships.
What is Tui?
Tui is the name of one of the most recognizable European touristic companies, which provide millions of people across the globe with the best deals in flights and hotels in any desirable location.
Before 1997
Before changing the name to Tui, the company was called Preussag, and the first two logos were based on this original name. The initial insignia featured a bold black sans-serif lettering in the uppercase set in the right from a stylized minimalist emblem composed of three lines arched to the center and forming a triangular structure.
1997 – 2001
The redesign of 1997 changed the monochrome color palette to blue on white, removed the graphical part of the logo, and switched the stable and strict sans-serif typeface of the wordmark to a more elegant italicized one. The style was completely changed and the new logo looked more sophisticated and airy.
2001 – 2017
In 2001 the name of the company was switched to Tui and the new logo was introduced in the same year. It was a Ted and white badge, composed of a rounded sans-serif lettering “World Of Tui” set on the right from a stylized emblem, formed by a smile-arched line with the solid Ted dot above its right end, and a horizontal serif on the left one. This was the stylized “Tui” inscription.
2017 – Today
TUI stands for Touristik Union International and it’s logo symbolizes its “Discover Your Smile” motto.
The TUI logo is made up of the words “World of TUI” along with a symbol depicting a smiling face. It was created by Interbrand design agency.
The iconic TUI logo is based on a very simple yet always perfectly working color palette of red on a white background. It reflects everything the brand stands for across everything it does. The main aim of the company is to bring smiles on people’s faces, giving them their best travel experience and happy moments.
Font and Color
The bold and friendly lettering from the official Tui badge is set in a heavy sans-serif font with the rounded ends of the bars, and the tail of the lowercase “U” slightly curved, adding playfulness to the inscription. The closest fonts to the one, used in this insignia, are, probably, Fruitygreen Pro Black, or Darwin Essential Alt Rounded Black, with some significant modifications of the contours:
As for the color palette of the Tui visual identity, it is based on a bright and dramatic scarlet-red shade, with the plain white background strengthening UO the mood of the logo, and creating a confident and bold image.