Eduard Keller was a Swiss trading house with roots in the Far East, active from the late 19th century until its 2000 merger into Diethelm Keller Holding. Its 1972 logo, credited to Swiss graphic designer Hansruedi Scheller, is a documented example of Swiss modernist corporate identity work.
Design and History
The Eduard Keller symbol was designed by Hansruedi Scheller in 1972 [1]. Scheller (1931–2007) was a Swiss graphic designer and a pioneer in signage systems and information graphics, creating wayfinding systems for around 230 large buildings from about 1967 onward [2]. He also created the signet for Swiss Sporthilfe [3].
The company behind the mark traces to 1887, when Eduard Anton Keller took over the Swiss merchant house C. Lutz & Co. in Manila and founded Ed. A. Keller-Stürke in Zurich as the new head office [4]. The Zurich-registered Eduard Keller AG was entered in the commercial register on 14 July 1908 [5]. The company was dissolved by shareholder resolution on 16 June 2000 following its merger with Eduard Keller Holding AG, which was renamed Diethelm Keller Holding AG [5]. The Diethelm and Keller groups formally merged in July 2000 to form Diethelm Keller Holding Ltd. [4].
In 2017, Diethelm Keller redesigned its corporate identity, introducing a new logo based more closely on the original fan tree trade mark from the early 1900s, while DKSH continued to use the abstract fantree logo created in 2000 [4].
Meaning and Symbolism
The fan tree or traveller palm is the symbol of the Diethelm Keller Group. According to the Malaysia Design Archive, the fan tree is strong and enjoys long life, the circle of branches and leaves embraces the group’s activities, the red colour reflects Swiss heritage, and the fan tree stands for Asian roots [6]. This symbolism applies to the Diethelm Keller Group’s fan tree mark, which traces to the early 1900s, rather than to Scheller’s 1972 Eduard Keller symbol.
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