THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS…
Royal Weddings, riots and the unstoppable rise of One Direction, all in all 2011 has been a funny old year. And whilst we’re happy to leave in-depth analysis of current affairs and sensible stuff to Jon Snow and co, we couldn’t resist rounding off the year with a wee review of the past 12 months…
It was the year that saw the seven-billionth human arrive on the planet, Hallmark launch a range of redundancy cards and baking become somewhat chic. It was also the year that several big name brands opted for a bit of a rethink.
We’d hardly tidied up after our Hogmanay party when Starbucks unveiled their revamped logo. They dropped their name from the logo, leaving just the siren staring back at us from our cappuccino cups. We confess we weren’t impressed at the time, but as the year’s gone by we’ve got so used to it – perhaps due to our addition to lattes – that it’s already become part of the furniture. Our verdict? Rather too subtle a revamp that seemed pretty pointless at the time, but which has slipped neatly into the collective subconscious. In other words, we no longer want to throw our Frappuccinos at someone’s head every time we see it.
2011 also saw us bid farewell to one of the most iconic – and overused by lads down the pub – strap lines ever, when just shy of its fortieth birthday, “Carlsberg don’t do…” was consigned to the history books. While we recognise that every concept will, eventually, run out of steam, we reckon there was still life left in this one and its replacement “This calls for a Carlsberg” hasn’t really been a worthy successor.
One iconic bit of branding that DID make it to the big four-oh was the Nike Swoosh, which clocked up its fourth decade this year. This stunningly simple device is recognised around the world and instantly associated with the brand. It’s remained largely unchanged for longer than anyone in Taste Towers has been alive and looks as fresh today as it ever did. Now that’s what good branding is all about.
Also celebrating a milestone anniversary this year was Nirvana’s Nevermind, which turned 20 in September. Even if you can’t name a single track on the album, we’d bet our last bag of chocolate coins you’d recognise the sleeve artwork with its iconic swimming baby. A veritable design classic we’re sure you’ll agree.
2011 was the year that ads for dairy products become the cream of the crop. Yeo Valley launched their own (farm) boy band, while Cravendale warned us about the potential dangers of over-evolved cats. Brilliant campaigns and marvelously memorable – truly the crème de la crème.
Social media continued to rule – although some uses of it were more successful than others. We’re still disproportionately angry about BT’s wedding planner Facebook page and remain unconvinced that Google+ is going to topple Twitter any time soon*, despite the initial excitement association with its June launch.
So, as we stand on the cusp of 2012 we all have to ask ourselves some questions. Big questions. Questions that will shape the coming year. Questions like what will the dog de jour who chases Fenton from our hearts be doing? Is Essex really the only way? Can scientists find a cure for Beiber fever? And do you want another cup cake?
Whatever else the New Year brings, we hope it brings you health, happiness, prosperity and success. Happy 2012 from all at Taste Towers.
* We freely admit this could be our version of Lord Sugar’s infamous iPod comment…