Baskin-Robbins is an American ice cream chain founded in 1945 by Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins, brothers-in-law who merged their separate ice cream shops. The brand is best known for its “31 flavors” concept, which promised customers a different flavor for every day of the month. That number has remained central to the company’s visual identity for decades, appearing in various forms across successive logo designs.
Design and History
The “31 flavors” positioning was developed in 1953 by the local California advertising agency Carson/Roberts, which advised the then-separate Snowbird and Burton’s shops to unify under the Baskin-Robbins name and adopt the number 31 as a signature element. The agency also recommended the pink and brown color scheme and circus-inspired typeface that defined the brand’s early look. [1]
Early logos placed the number 31 prominently, often in a circle above or beside the Baskin-Robbins name. In 1980, the logo’s background color changed from green to pink, and the wording was simplified from “Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream” to just “Baskin-Robbins.” A 1991 update brought the name to the foreground with the 31 still clearly visible, and introduced the blue and pink color combination that would last for decades. [2]
The most significant change came in 2006, when the logo was redesigned so that the number 31 was no longer displayed as a separate element. Instead, the pink negative space within the blue letters “B” and “R” was shaped to form the numerals “3” and “1,” embedding the flavor count directly into the monogram. [2] This hidden-number treatment proved durable and was retained in subsequent updates.
In late 2020, Baskin-Robbins introduced an updated logo and custom typeface developed by the creative agency Jones Knowles Ritchie (JKR). The redesign opened up the spacing between letterforms and made the hidden “31” more visually prominent within the “BR” mark. [3] JKR also collaborated with the type foundry Face37 to create a custom brand font, with letterforms inspired by the iconic “31” symbol. [3]
In April 2022, Baskin-Robbins launched its first major rebrand in nearly two decades, introducing a new logo, packaging, and employee uniforms under the tagline “Seize the Yay.” The visual identity system was designed by the experience agency ChangeUp, while the supporting campaign was developed by 22squared. [4] The new logo took on a vintage look reminiscent of the brand’s early days, with the pink and blue palette replaced by brown and pink, a return to the color scheme of the 1980 iteration. [5] The hidden “31” remained intact within the “BR” monogram. [6]
Meaning and Symbolism
The number 31 has been the defining element of Baskin-Robbins’ visual identity since the early 1950s, symbolizing the brand’s founding promise of offering a different flavor for each day of the month. [1] In the current logo, the pink portions of the “B” and “R” letterforms form the numerals “3” and “1,” a visual device that keeps the flavor-count concept embedded in the brand mark without stating it explicitly. [2]
The 2022 rebrand leaned into the company’s long-standing use of circus imagery, with the new system intended to feel fun and bold while celebrating the brand’s heritage. [6] The vintage-inspired look was designed to evoke nostalgia while remaining contemporary, drawing on the brown and pink colors associated with the brand’s earlier decades. [5]
Typography and Design
The 2020 identity update included a custom typeface developed by Jones Knowles Ritchie in collaboration with the type foundry Face37. The letterforms were designed with inspiration drawn from the iconic “31” symbol, and the font was built to support non-Latin scripts including Arabic and Japanese. [3] The 2022 refresh further refined the typography, with the logo described as featuring cleaner lines and a less busy typeface than its immediate predecessor. [4]
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