The Otto Group has changed its website, font and logo to adapt the corporate design to the new digital consumer habits. In addition, the core of the brand, the vision “Responsible commerce that inspires”, should be communicated even more clearly.
Accordingly, the new corporate website ottogroup.com has had a new structure and design since the end of May. In the future, all important content of the Otto Group, for example in the areas of sustainability, strategy or careers, will be distributed via a “story hub”, a platform for stories. The new design looks tidy, with lots of white space, clear lines and a simple and intuitive side architecture. The content has also been standardized and reduced to the essentials.
“As a family business, values such as sustainability and humanity are crucial for us, which is how we differentiate ourselves from our competitors. We want to communicate this even more strongly in the future. At the same time, we are a thoroughly digital group of companies that stands for the power of transformation and agility – both of which are reflected in our new appearance,” comments Otto Group CEO Alexander Birken in a statement.
The change can be seen most clearly in the new logo, which is concentrated in a so-called super sign: the two letters of the Otto Group, “O” and “G”, were merged into a memorable icon that is easy to recognize.
The new font is called “Optimist” and was specially adapted for the Otto Group. It is light, dynamic, variable and particularly easy to read on all end devices and in all media. It was designed by the Swiss type foundry Newglyph. The company donates a tenth of its profits to charitable causes, which is a clear commitment to value-based action, which the Otto Group also lives by.
There were many steps ahead of the end product and precise investigations at the beginning of the redesign process: Esch brand consultants analyzed the brand image and the perception of the Otto Group. CEO Alexander Birken, Chairman of the Supervisory Board Michael Otto and the creative partner Benjamin Otto played a key role in the process. Finally, the Strichpunkt design agency worked out various design routes and their implementation.
A clear commitment to digitality was important to everyone and is reflected in the naturalness and clarity of digital touchpoints, especially the website. Thomas Voigt, Head of Communications and his team responsible for the Otto Group’s corporate design, puts it in a nutshell: “Nowadays, you don’t have to look digital, you have to feel digital.”