Update Includes The ‘Squiggle’ Shot
Hostess Brands, a venerable sweet snacking company, has redesigned and modernized its corporate brand identity in collaboration with brand design agency CBX. The aim: to visually underscore Hostess Brands’ positioning as a transformational, growth-oriented snacking company positioned to capitalize on consumer trends and deliver long-term sustainable growth. To that point, the redesign was announced as part of the company’s recent Investor Day presentation.
In partnership with the client’s marketing leadership, CBX reimagined the identity with color choices of dark blue representing strength and quality, complemented by a red that signifies heart, passion, and excitement for the future. The letterforms for the new identity are customized with flourishes on the sans serif Isidora font “bringing a subtle smile to the H, and a little kick to the D, R and A.” The back half of the new Hostess Brands identity loops, connects, and flows as a nod to speed and agility. Finally, the mark is capped with a new dual-tone red heart, a visual representation that honors its legacy while turning the page toward Hostess’ future. The finishing touch was to modify the company’s name with the term “Brands” to ensure that the identity is inclusive of both its iconic products as well as new brands and products in its portfolio.
“What CBX created for Hostess Brands was, at heart, a balancing act,” said CBX creative director Chris Cook, “combining the highly recognizable color palette with the spirit of integrity, grit and passion that sets the company apart from the category.” There is no change to the Hostess consumer brand design mark, which appears across the company’s familiar packaging assortment of Twinkies, CupCakes, Ding Dongs and more. CBX also augmented the new Hostess Brands corporate identity by creating a library of thousands of new photographs shot in five locations across North America, along with presentation slides and visual style guidance. Among the new content assets – the “squiggle shot,” a close-up of the Hostess® CupCakes icing squiggle that captures its details through macro photography. That curvature and swirl motif was then carried throughout the rest of CBX’s visual system for Hostess Brands.
