We are pleased to announce the completion of SAISON’s whole new branding typeface. In this article, we feature two interviews: the one with Joachim Müller-Lancé of Fontworks, who was involved in designing the typeface, and another with SAISON’s Branding Strategy Department. These interviews provide insights into the background and development of this project.
Insights from Joachim Müller-Lancé on the typeface
Interpreting the SAISON Logotype: A 40-Year Lagacy
The SAISON Sans project began with a request to create a typeface family that complements the existing logotype.
We believe that the logo design of the SAISON Card, issued in 1983, was crafted to convey a modern, practical, and unadorned image to a wide audience. While preserving the well-known identity of the brand, we worked with careful adjustments to built a new branding typeface that reflects SAISON’s present and future.
The SAISON logotype draw its roots from geometric sans-serifs, which originated with typefaces like Erbar and Kabel in Germany during the 1920s and 1930s. More specifically, styles such as Futura, Century Gothic, and Avant Garde Gothic all infuenced the SAISON logotype.
While the logotype's geometric style is distinctive and eye-catching, a new typeface needed to be designed for text composition that is not only readable but also harmonious and consistent. The key focus in developing SAISON Sans was achieving these fine adjustments.
Regular
the SAISON Card began in 1983.
Medium
the SAISON Card began in 1983.
Bold
the SAISON Card began in 1983.
SAISON Sans: A Geometric and Linear Typeface that inherits the Identity
SAISON Sans is a linear-style typeface that is built on the existing logotype. The linear style is characerized by uniform or similar stroke thickness and incorporates elements from geometric, mechanical, scientific, and industrial design.
When designing a geometric typeface, it is crucial to keep in mind that it should present a "geometric style" rather than simply construct it from basic geometric shapes. For example, if the letter B were made from perfect circles and a straight line, it would result in optically problematic flaws and an unnatural appearance. While such designs might be eye-catching when used as decoration, they cannot contribute to readability.
Using simple geometric shapes can reduce readability, when displaying long text in small size. In order to ensure that the typeface could performs well without any problems, various adjustments were made during the production process to account for optical illusions.
Let’s explore some of the distinctive features of SAISON Sans.
First, the letter G stands for Geometric. It initially had a perfectly circular appearance typical of geometric sans-serifs like Futura and Avant Garde Gothic. In order to soften the somewhat sharp and mechanical look of the original SAISON design, we adjusted the curve towards the right corner.
The letter M for Modern features a stable, dynamic shape with a touch of practical elegance. The gently sloping shape dates back to ancient Roman inscriptions, but we have fine-tuned it to modern proportions. The three slightly chamfered sharp corners are characteristic of this typeface and give it a sense of precision.
Now here are letters of f, t and r as in the word of future. These letters tend to be designed with a fairly narrow width, giving them an outdated and rigid apperance, and causing uneven color when composed into text. In the new SAISON Sans, these letters are wider and more balanced, with improved legibility.
After extensive refinement, the typeface with refined proportions was finally completed. The letter widths, which varied slightly in the original SAISON letters, have been harmonized to align with classic Roman proportions, making the font more cohesive and readable when set into text.
A New Trend in Fonts: Elevating Brand Quality
The initial goal of this project was to develpo a new font by using the current identity. However, after extensive discussions with SAISON’s design team, it became clear that they sought to convey a sense of higher quality, elegance, and a forward-looking vision. As a result, we decided to propose another approach besides SAISON Sans. That is SAISON Sans Advance.
Regular
the SAISON Card began in 1983.
Achieving both inheritance and innovation in a single design is a challenging task. Our first step was thorough research. We explored areas of Tokyo known for their high-quality products and photographed various types and characters that caught our attention, such as store signs.
Historically, typefaces like Futura and Optima enjoyed significant popularity. While Futura has waned in prominence, Optima continues to be favored by high-end brands, ranging from sports cars to chocolates, and has increasingly appeared in everyday items like household goods. What we found interesting was a new trend that could be called a hybrid, which is somewhere between the design of the two typefaces. It is characterized by its simple and clean sans-serif appearance with moderate contrast. This emerging trend has gained significant attention and provided valuable insights for our project.
SAISON Sans Advance: An Elegant and Sophisticated Typeface Combining Tradition and Trend with Contrast
SAISON Sans Advance introduces a style that incorporates stroke contrast, setting it apart from the linear SAISON Sans.
Typefaces with contrast and modulated stroke thickness – such as Siena, Optima, and Trajan – evoke a sense of history, classicism, tradition, dignity, and nobility. What we think is, by adding subtle modulations to the stroke thickness in SAISON Sans, we could enhance the typeface’s balance and give it an elegant and sophisticated impression without sacrificing its original appearance. We explored the middle ground between the geometric roots of the original SAISON letters and a classic typeface with contrasts, and found the ideal shape during the production.
As with SAISON Sans, let me introduce some letters that features SAISON Sans Advance. First, here is the letter C for Contrast, which has a distinctive shape. Its crescent form that seems to open toward the future, the curved back and the spread at both ends give it a sense of elegance and dynamism, achieving a harmonious balance.
The N from New is dynamic, powerful, and well-balanced with elegant contrasts between thick and thin strokes.
The Q is perfect for Quality. It boasts a straight tail resembling a baton pointing to a circle, or a ray of light emanating from the sun. This beautiful letter is finely honed and balanced from part to part.
The letter R with its two legs firmly planted on the ground represents Redesign, Ratio or Reason. It incorporates all the design elements of the alphabet – horizontal, vertical, diagonal, and curved lines – and all the proportions ensuring stability and visual appeal.
Finally, let’s take a look at the figures. The number 2024 combines dynamic curves, diagonals, and ovals to create a positive impression of new beginnings.
Linear SAISON Sans and contrasted SAISON Sans Advance. The slightly different approaches of the two fonts provide flexibility for various applications and occasions. Both fonts maintain a consistent style that effectively conveys SAISON’s brand message.
SAISON’s Thoughts on Developing Branding Font The In-house Design Team, Branding Strategy Department of Credit SAISON
A Branding Typeface for the New Era
The creation of a new branding typeface was driven by the need to unify our global brand image and enhance our branding in the digital age by improving accessibility.
Since the SAISON Card was first issued in 1983, the SAISON Group has maintained the logotype designed by Ikko Tanaka as a key brand symbol.
However, this logotype was never developed into a complete typeface. Consequently, various fonts have been used in internal documents, external communications, and websites. With the rapid expansion of our group and global business, it became essential to develop a Latin typeface based on this historic logotype to ensure a consistent brand image for SAISON.
In today’s digital world, the original logotype’s thin lettering posed challenges for legibility and accessibility, particularly in digital media. To address these issues, we needed to expand the typeface’s weight for better visibility.
To tackle these challenges, we enlisted the help of Fontworks to create a custom typeface for our own.
The History of the Logotype that Symbolizes SAISON
The base of SAISON Sans is rooted in the logotype created by Ikko Tanaka in 1983 for the issuance of the SAISON Card. Seiji Tsutsumi, then owner of the SAISON Group[1] and an industrialist as well as a poet and novelist, had established a relationship with designer Ikko Tanaka through artistic circles[2]. Trusting Tanaka’s expertise, Seiji Tsutsumi commissioned him as the art director of Seibu SAISON, beginning with the production of the Seibu Group’s annual report in 1972.
As the Seibu Group’s business expanded, particularly in the cultural sector, the SAISON logotype became the symbol of the whole group. In 2019, the SAISON Card brand logo and corporate logo were refreshed with a simpler design to enhance legibility, but the essence of the original lettering remained largely unchanged.
Today, the original lettering continues to be used in the logos of newly launched global and group companies as well as new services.
Identity Inherited Through Typeface
It has been about a year and a half since we embarked on the typeface production project based on our logo. As the typeface nears completion, we can clearly envision the unification of the SAISON Group’s brand identity and are excited about its future.
Through the project, Mr. Joachim Müller-Lancé, who worked on the typeface design, has clearly and engagingly conveyed how subtle design changes can impact the overall impression and depth. We believe that this project has transcended mere font development, preserving and enhancing the core of the SAISON Group’s identity.
Looking ahead, we encourage all our employees to adopt the new branding typeface and experience the transformation it brings. This should foster a greater sense of awareness and initiative in shaping the SAISON brand collectively.
Additionally, we aim to unify the typeface across all our digital media, including official documents, websites, and other SAISON Group publications, as well as on a global scale.
We hope that SAISON Sans will help us more clearly convey the Group’s identity and deliver a consistent brand message.