Valero Energy Corporation, the San Antonio-based petroleum refiner and marketer, has used a distinctive letter “V” entwined with a curved line as its core brand symbol since the 1990s. The mark appears in blue and yellow and is registered as a trademark by Valero Marketing and Supply Company.[1]
Design and History
Valero’s earliest logo, used from the company’s 1980 founding into the 1990s, depicted a propeller or screw with pointed ends above the word “Valero” in a serif typeface.[2] The propeller device was described in one design reference as a sharp oil-drilling bit.[2]
In the 1990s, Valero replaced the propeller with a large “V” crossed by a yellow curved line, with the company name set in a plain sans-serif below. In this early version, the letter “A” in “Valero” lacked its middle crossbar, making it resemble an inverted “V.”[2]
The “V” entwined with a curved line was registered as a trademark in 2009 for “processing and refining of crude oil and other hydrocarbon feedstocks.”[3] A separate registration from 2014 covers the same device for storage, distribution, transportation and delivery of oil and oil-derived products.[4]
In April 2018, Valero announced a new branded station design called Vanguard, created by Atlanta-based design firm Antista Fairclough. The firm had provided design expertise to Valero for more than 13 years and had developed Valero’s Ultramar brand design used in Canada.[5] The Vanguard design was selected after Valero evaluated more than a dozen alternatives in a national consumer survey; consumers favored it for its “progressive and modern look” that they considered “clean,” “likable” and “safe.”[5]
Thomas Fairclough, co-owner of Antista Fairclough, said the design “evolved after a process of fully understanding Valero’s brand strategies and its customer base,” and that “Valero’s brand heritage and image played an important role in the new design.”[5]
Meaning and Symbolism
The word “Valero” reflects the original name of the Alamo, the Mission San Antonio de Valero in San Antonio, Texas, according to the trademark registration for the “V” device.[1]
The trademark registration for the “V” mark claims color as a distinctive feature: the curved line is yellow and the border of the curved line is teal blue.[1] A 2022 trademark application for a Valero station canopy design describes a white capital letter “V” entwined with a yellow curved line within a blue oval.[6]
Typography and Design
The Valero wordmark uses a custom sans-serif typeface with rounded letterforms, developed by Antista Fairclough for the 2018 brand refresh.[2] The 2018 update refined the “V” device, making the curve more compact compared with the earlier hand-drawn version.[7]
Logo Index is an independent educational archive covering logos, visual identities and graphic design history. All trademarks and brand assets remain the property of their respective owners.
