Deconstructing the new JJB Sports Logo

OK, I admit this is probably an easy target, we're not talking about a very prestigious brand here, but you can't help what annoys you can you? 

As soon as I saw the logo on TV it stuck in my throat like a half eaten cough sweet, and I've felt the jagged edges sliding down my esophagus ever since, I'm hoping this article will be the drink of water that washes it down into the pit of my guts forever.

JJB are probably the only business to have benefitted from the riots this summer, so perhaps their clientele don't care much for the way a logo looks, as much they as they care for how it makes cheap pair of tracksuit bottoms cost, but guess what? I do.

So, what was it? Was it the 2.0 ness of it? The cheap multi layered plaque effect? No, it was the angles created by the type that made this such a awkward piece of work.

The above diagram shows what leapt out to me when I saw it, the first two J's create 'Angle B' which contrasts against 'Angle B', but this could have been OK, if they didn't use the same typeface, but smaller for the word 'Sports'. By Shrinking this typeface down, the angles no longer match with the typeface above, and they create 'Angle C' which when put all together make a real mess that's genuinely uncomfortable on the eye. This is demonstrated where angles A and C intersect.

The solution to this would have been to use a different typeface for 'Sports' to negate the angle problem and smooth the whole thing out. But then again, what do I know, I don't even own any tracksuit bottoms, do you?

Get in touch ben@citizenstudios.co.uk

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