Tate & Lyle PLC, the London-based food and beverage ingredient solutions company, introduced a new brand identity on 31 January 2023. The rebrand, developed by the global creative design agency Bulletproof, included a new logo, typography, imagery, narrative and tone of voice.[1]
Design and History
The 2023 identity centres on the ampersand in the company’s name. Tate & Lyle’s marketing leadership described the “power of and” as a key design concept, noting that the ampersand “is not just distinctive but communicates that Tate & Lyle can, and does, bring more.”[1] The company states that for over 165 years, the ampersand in its name has symbolised its commitment to harnessing the power of “and”, emphasising its collaborative nature and continuous curiosity.[2]
The rebrand was part of a broader business transformation into a purpose-led, growth-focused speciality food and beverage solutions company. At the heart of the new brand is the narrative “Science, Solutions, Society”, the promise Tate & Lyle makes to its customers.[1] Bulletproof’s executive creative director David Beare said the process began by looking at the history and future of Tate & Lyle, the competition and the current brand world, but that speaking to Tate & Lyle’s people was most important in creating a brand its employees feel reflects them.[1]
Motion design studio Found Studio developed a series of masterbrand assets for the rebrand, centred around the new ampersand logo, visualising the brand’s three pillars through dynamic, abstract simulations.[3]
Before the 2023 update, Tate & Lyle’s long-standing logo was designed by FHK Henrion (1914-1990), a British-based designer of international renown whose best-known logos include those for Tate and Lyle, the National Theatre and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.[4] Henrion’s Tate & Lyle mark was described in a CNN feature on Jewish émigré designers as “a masterful example of brand identity design, with the logo itself made up of sugar cubes and the words reflecting each other almost identically.”[5]
Meaning and Symbolism
The ampersand is the central symbolic element of the current identity. Tate & Lyle’s global head of marketing and insights, Helen Bass, explained that the ampersand “shows a continuous curiosity and restlessness to solve challenges, go the extra mile and exceed its own and others’ expectations in the broader world.”[1] The company frames the ampersand as connecting its three brand pillars: science and nature, ingredients and solutions, and customers and consumers.[2]
Henrion’s earlier logo, by contrast, drew its meaning from the company’s sugar heritage. The mark was constructed from sugar cubes, with the words “Tate” and “Lyle” reflecting each other almost identically, a modernist treatment that remained in use for more than 50 years.[5]
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