Taobao (淘宝), the Chinese e-commerce platform founded in 2003 by Alibaba Group, has used a wordmark built around the Chinese characters “淘宝” since its launch. The name translates to “search for treasures,” reflecting the platform’s promise of discovery among millions of listings from individual sellers and small businesses.[1]
Design and History
The original Taobao logo was designed by Wang Chaoying (王超鹰), a noted corporate brand image specialist. Wang initially proposed an English-letter logo, reasoning that an English mark would feel more sophisticated for an internet company at the time. After discussions, however, the Chinese-character version was chosen instead to better match Taobao’s mass-market positioning and approachable image. Wang has said he hoped the logo would be one that “nobody particularly likes and nobody particularly dislikes, because it belongs to the public.”[2]
For 18 years, the logo remained essentially unchanged. In December 2020, during the “Double 12” shopping festival, Taobao quietly introduced a new logo, the most significant visual update since the platform’s founding. The new mark removed the character “网” (wang, meaning “net”) from the previous “淘宝网” wordmark and dropped the “.com” suffix, leaving only “淘宝” with the romanized “Taobao” beneath it.<a href="https://www.brandinlabs.com/2020/12/30/%e6%b7%98%e5%af%b6%e7%b6%b2%e6%9b%b4%e6%96%b0logo%ef%bc%8c%e5%88%aa%e9%99%a4%e3%80%8c%e7%b6%b2%e3%80%8d%e5%ad%97%e5%8f%8a%e5%9f%9f%e5%90%8d%e5%be%8c%e7%b6%b4/)[3] The update was officially announced in January 2021.[4]
The 2021 redesign was a collaborative effort involving Alibaba Design, the international brand design firm MetaDesign, and the Chinese type foundry FounderType (方正字库).[5] According to Alibaba’s design team, the upgrade was framed as “optimization rather than revolution,” with the goal of preserving the original character and color while refining structural details.[2]
The new wordmark was designed around three keywords: “open,” “connect,” and “fun.” In the Chinese characters, previously cramped or disconnected strokes were joined into continuous, flowing brush movements to express “connection.” The letterforms were opened up with more breathing space to convey “openness,” and curved joints were added at stroke bends to make the type feel more playful and energetic.[6][5]
The app icon also changed during this update. The gradient on the orange background shifted from the upper-right corner to the lower-right corner, with a softer transition.[4]
Meaning and Symbolism
The 2021 redesign drew explicitly on Chinese calligraphic tradition. According to the design team, the new logotype “fully integrates traditional Chinese calligraphy culture with modern design language,” borrowing techniques from the running script (行书) style. The characters were given natural writing momentum, with connected strokes that flow smoothly between brush movements.[5]
The horizontal strokes in “淘宝” were designed with a “straight on the left, curved on the right” upward sweep, evoking the energy of a brush stroke gathering force before release. The dot strokes of the two characters were made uniformly rounded to echo each other, creating a sense of mutual gaze between the characters.[5]
The romanized “Taobao” lettering was redesigned to echo the Chinese characters. The crossbar of the “T” mirrors the upward-curving horizontal strokes of the Chinese logotype, and the arch of the lowercase “a” echoes the curved “勹” radical in “淘.” The “o” was opened up internally to balance stroke weight and improve legibility.[5]
Typography and Design
The Taobao wordmark is a custom-designed logotype, not a commercially available typeface. The 2021 version was refined by FounderType, one of China’s leading type foundries, working alongside Alibaba Design and MetaDesign.[5] The redesign also aimed to improve legibility at small digital sizes, optimizing stroke weight and internal spacing for use across app icons, web headers, and other screen-based applications.<a href="https://www.brandinlabs.com/2020/12/30/%e6%b7%98%e5%af%b6%e7%b6%b2%e6%9b%b4%e6%96%b0logo%ef%bc%8c%e5%88%aa%e9%99%a4%e3%80%8c%e7%b6%b2%e3%80%8d%e5%ad%97%e5%8f%8a%e5%9f%9f%e5%90%8d%e5%be%8c%e7%b6%b4/)[3]
Taobao’s brand color is orange, a hue shared across Alibaba Group’s consumer platforms. The brand’s primary orange has been documented as #FF5000 in brand color references.[7]
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