Why did Uber’s Head Of Design Quit?

Several cases have been witnessed where a rebrand received a hostile reception from the fanatic followers. The most recent one is by Uber, the taxi hailing app, whose rebrand was likened to toilet tiles, thus making the company receive a lot of backlash from the customers. The rebrand by Uber was designed to give the users a different logo based on the various locations where the services were available. So serious was the redesign that the CEO and co-founder of the company as well as the Uber design director had to resign due to the excessive criticism that the new logo had.

Customers love their brands, and they are ready to protect it should there be a need to do so. This is usually a significant challenge for many corporate organizations looking to rebrand. There is always an apprehension on the kind of reception the rebrand will receive with the most dreaded one being a rejection of the rebrand by the loyal customers. As a matter of fact, most businesses will have several tests to gauge the effectiveness of a brand before they finally release it to masses.

About the Uber Redesign

The new Uber logo is centered around a theme of atoms and bits representing the company’s focus on humans and technology. Instead of hiring an external design team to take up on the rebranding of the company, Uber decided to use their own in-house design team led by the CEO and co-founder Travis Kalanick together with Uber design director, Shalin Amin. According to sources intimate to the redesign, the co-founder did not trust anyone else to make a good redesign, and this is why he decided to get on board with the rest of the design team.

The new redesign caused a storm worldwide, with the majority feeling disappointed by the sheer lack of creativity and the casual nature in which the new logo was made. Others have referred to it as “asshole” because it represents the type of tiles usually used in constructing toilets. The patterns on the back of the app icon when it is loading are the design of the company’s communications designer, and she admitted that the inspiration came from the small square tiles found in her bathroom.

One of the most disappointing things about the Uber logo is that it attempted to change the entire identity of the whole original logo. For instance, the conspicuous and well designed U in the initial design was taken away. Instead, it has been replaced by a circular motif and a hexagonal shape for rider’s and partner’s devices respectively. Both the patterns have a square “bit” right at the center, and this is what caused outrage on the design. Many people likened the bit to the anus.

The other glaring and potentially annoying difference about the new Uber logo is the conspicuous absence of the white and black theme present in the initial design. Instead, the company saw it fit to adopt a colorful palette which they claim that was inspired by the textiles, architecture, fashion and art present in the various countries where the company has operations.

For instance, in Mexico, the logo displays palettes of pink as well as the patterns present in the local tiles. In Ireland, the design was inspired the Georgian architecture and the lush green vegetation typical of the Irish countryside. The Nigerian version of the logo, on the other hand, was inspired by the Ankara due to its bright colors and the wonderful geometric patterns. The typeface used in the new logo design is also more condensed, thicker and simpler. The typeface was chosen to remove the curls that were present in the R and U on the previous logo.

With the new logo design, users in the various countries will see customized versions of the logo to match the identities and the colors of those countries. The company also has plans to roll out city specific logos which will depict the patterns and the colors of the cities. This is intended to enable the customers see Uber from a distance, and also to reflect on the fact the company has grown and is now more mature than it was a few years ago.

The resignation of the lead designers who spearheaded the Uber redesign is an indication of how sensitive a logo change is to the customers. It is the desire of every company to keep their customers as close as possible and would not admire for anything to make them unhappy. The storm is not yet settled on the perceived poor redesign of the Uber logo, and there are speculations that the company might as well revert to the old design as they think up of something new. Only time will tell.

Check out these color combination tips to avoid mistakes in your own designs!