H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (2024)

Not just any clothing brand can boast tremendous growth. There are but a few of them that managed to reach a global megacorporation level. One can notice the H&M logo in just about any mall these days. It’s one of the most popular clothing brands. Threads and accessories offered in the shops are created by the company’s designing team. Moreover, even world-renowned designers would like to collaborate with H&M and place the H&M logo on some of their creations. Today, we are going to take a closer look at the history of H&M’s success.

Table of Contents

H&M Logo History

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (1)

Erling Persson, the company’s founder, originates from Sweden. He has been affected by World War II just like many of his peers. However, it also helped his business a lot. He got to the USA where he witnessed a completely different approach to clothes commerce. They paid more attention to the needs of the customers. And so Persson decided to adopt the tactics and offered usable clothes designs at reasonable prices in his homeland. That’s where the history of H&M begins.

H&M Logo evolution

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (2)

So, few years after the war a new shop called “Hennes” opened in Sweden. “Hennes” is Sweden for “hers”. As you might already have guessed the shop was designed for women. The first H&M logo contained only a single handwritten inscription. Scandinavian design tends to be minimalistic and the first H&M logo wasn’t an exception.

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (3)

Persson, however, kept going and developing his brand. He decided to purchase an already functioning clothes shop. He chose a huntsman clothes store. But the owner of the shop didn’t want to lose his business and offered Persson funds for further growth and became the first shareholder of the company. That’s how Hennes acquired Mauritz which was a surname of the huntsman store owner. It is these two letters that now were put together a new H&M logo.

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (4)

Logo Font

Well, now that we know the meaning of the logo, the time has come to learn something about the font used in the H&M logo. The very first variation, being seemingly handwritten, was rather friendly and eye-catching. The inscription itself was slightly moved to a top angle. It was supposed to symbolize motion, confidence, reliability as well as stability.

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (5)

After merging with the Mauritz store, a necessity for new H&M logo creation arose. The new option was a monogram with some explanations regarding the implied surnames. The lettering was written in Sans-Serif that was a very popular font back then. And shortly after that, in but a few years, some redecorations were applied to the logo resulting in an ultimate H&M logo version that hasn’t been changed throughout centuries. Logo is featured a HM Amperserif font.

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (6)

It goes without saying that the abbreviation features some unusual font. It is actually a unique design developed especially for the H&M logo. Thanks to savvy management and capsule collections by famous and renowned designers the brand is loved and recognized across the globe. Trendy threads on sale have boomed many times causing customers to flood fitting rooms in H&M stores.

H&M Symbol meaning

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (7)

The Director Board of the company never saved for a rainy day, giving it all to proper marketing and advertising. As a result, a vocalist of ABBA that was on the top charts back then became the first model of an ad. The company’s name was conclusively reduced to two letters. After learning the history of the company there probably aren’t any questions like what does H&M logo means. But is there any hidden message? Well, sure, there is. A bright red hints that the brand is designed for teens.

An outlining has long since gone. There mustn’t be any borders for a trendy and modern H&M logo. You might consider that as advice. Don’t outline your logo if your audience is mostly teens and youngsters. In general, the logo conveys passion as well as youths’ desire for standing out from the crowd and finding where they belong. It is extremely recognizable. You can hardly confuse it with some other logo.

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (8)

Dynamic lettering, traced by some wide and lashing brush, calls to immediate action. That’s why it’s hard to miss the store or simply walk by without having a look inside. H&M logo is also rather simplistic. It features no arty-crafty elements. It is not rooted in glorious history and boasts no hidden meanings. Nevertheless, the H&M logo has been designed more than fifty years ago and it still looks trendy, stylish, and inviting. That’s what a really good logo should be like.

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (9)

Ilya Lavrov

I’m a product and graphic designer with 10-years background. Writing about branding, logo creation and business.

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design (2024)

FAQs

H&M Logo: A Brief History of a Design? ›

The first logo was initially handwritten with the complete brand name. The company kept the handwritten letters but abbreviated them. The letters H and M appeared in sans-serif, a preferred font choice back then. Today, the logo has only the letters and an ampersand.

What is the story behind the H&M logo? ›

The original H&M logo was created when the brand was named Hennes, and composed of a single logotype. The wordmark in a bold handwritten typeface was set in the title case and placed slightly diagonally, looking friendly and solid. The original color palette of the Hennes visual identity was monochrome.

What is the brief description of H&M? ›

The H&M group is one of the world's leading fashion companies – with the brands H&M and H&M Home, COS, & Other Stories, Monki, Weekday Cheap Monday and ARKET. Each with its own unique identity, all our brands are united by a passion for fashion and quality and the drive to dress customers in a sustainable way.

What is the brand message of H&M? ›

Today, H&M's brand persona is built on a foundation of core values that are tightly aligned with its target consumers. These values include affordability, fashion-forwardness, sustainability, and inclusivity.

What does hand M stand for? ›

April 2021) H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB, also known as H&M Group, is a multinational clothing company based in Sweden that focuses on fast-fashion clothing. As of 23 June 2022, H&M Group operated in 75 geographical markets with 4,801 stores under the various company brands, with 107,375 full-time equivalent positions.

Who designed H&M logo? ›

Inspired by his trip to New York City the year before, Swedish entrepreneur Erling Persson opens a new womenswear store in Västerås, Sweden. He calls it Hennes, Swedish for “Hers”. The soon-to-be-famous Hennes logotype is designed by the founder himself.

Why is H&M unique? ›

At its headquarters in Stockholm, H&M employs designers who watch for fashion trends and then bring them to life in new products. Suppliers around the world help push the product to stores in just under a month. That probably explains why there is new clothing every time you step into an H&M store.

What are the 7 values of H&M? ›

Core Values
  • Integrity. Be honest and keep our promises, living our values through action.
  • Strong Work Ethic. ...
  • Compassion, Commitment and Respect. ...
  • Responsibility and Accountability. ...
  • Continuous Personal and Team Improvement. ...
  • Stewardship. ...
  • Perspective.

How does H&M design their clothes? ›

Since 2020, Weekday have been using circular design principles to design their denim collections. They started with two denim styles and have gradually added more each season. In 2023, 59% of their jeans assortment was made following the principles and now they are rolling out the approach to more product groups.

Where did H&M clothing originate? ›

What is the controversial design of H&M? ›

H&M has come under fire this week for an image on their website of a black child dressed in a green hoodie with the words 'coolest monkey in the jungle' printed on it. The image of the little boy has caused outrage on social media with singer The Weeknd taking to Twitter to proclaim an end to his relationship with H&M.

What was the first H&M logo? ›

The first H&M logo was in fact the logo of the Hennes boutiques. At that time, Mauritz Widforss had not yet been acquired to create the H&M brand we know today. The Hennes logo was a signature logo, consisting solely of the company name.

What does HM mean from a girl? ›

If someone sends a message where "HM" means "high maintenance," they may be looking to talk about a significant other or friend.

What was H&M originally called? ›

What do these two letters represent? The origin of this Swedish brand goes back to the 1940s, according to H&M's website. It was 1947 when Swedish entrepreneur Erling Persson opened a women's clothing store in Sweden called "Hennes," which actually meant "Hers" in English.

Do H and M use child labor? ›

We take a zero-tolerance approach to both forced labor and child labor. All suppliers working for us must sign and comply with our strict anti-forced-labor and anti-child-labor policies.

What is the full name of H&M? ›

H&M Hennes & Mauritz Retail Pvt.

What was the H&M campaign controversy? ›

The campaign showed a picture of two primary school-aged girls in pinafore dresses with the caption, "Make those heads turn in H&M's Back to School fashion." Many internet users reacted strongly against the advertisem*nt. "What the h*** is going on? This is sickening, sexualising kids," said a user.

Why did H&M change their name? ›

That's because Mauritz is a formal name. Persson acquired the Swedish hunting apparel and fishing gear company Mauritz Widforss in 1968, and changed the name of his stores from Hennes to Hennes & Mauritz. This is when Persson's company started selling men's and children's apparel, too.

When was the H&M logo created? ›

An great journey with a Swedish fashion icon

In 1999 H&M needed to update the original logotype from in 1968. With respect for the original logo we made careful alterations, creating harmony and balance, optimizing readability.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Jamar Nader

Last Updated:

Views: 5574

Rating: 4.4 / 5 (55 voted)

Reviews: 86% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Jamar Nader

Birthday: 1995-02-28

Address: Apt. 536 6162 Reichel Greens, Port Zackaryside, CT 22682-9804

Phone: +9958384818317

Job: IT Representative

Hobby: Scrapbooking, Hiking, Hunting, Kite flying, Blacksmithing, Video gaming, Foraging

Introduction: My name is Jamar Nader, I am a fine, shiny, colorful, bright, nice, perfect, curious person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.