Brightstar Corporation was a global wireless device distributor and services company founded in 1997 by Marcelo Claure. In August 2021, the company rebranded as Likewize, a move designed to reflect its transformation from a mobile phone distributor into a complete technology protection and support provider.[1]
Design and History
Brightstar unveiled a significant global rebrand at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February 2014. According to CEO Marcelo Claure, the updated logo was designed to reflect the company’s position in the wireless services and distribution market. Claure explained that the colors were chosen to reflect the sun, the “brightest star” in the universe, and the new wording “Serving Wireless” was added to the mark.[2] The Miami Herald separately described the new mark as a “sun-orange logo” introduced during that period.[3]
Claure said of the refresh: “It’s been many years since we updated our branding, so we felt it was time for a refresh. We want to be loud and we want to be aggressive.” He noted that the company asked customers what Brightstar meant to them, which led to the “Serving Wireless” tagline, since the firm served “pretty much all the wireless players in the wireless ecosystem.”[2]
The 2014 branding was also applied to the company’s European operations, which traded as Brightstar 20:20 following its acquisition of the UK-based distributor 20:20 Mobile. Claure stated at the time that the 20:20 branding would remain “for now” while it still carried value in its markets.[2]
In August 2021, Brightstar announced it was rebranding as Likewize. The company said the comprehensive rebrand was designed to showcase its transformation from its origin as a mobile phone distributor to the complete tech protection and support provider it had become.[1] CEO Rod Millar explained that the company had “undergone a fundamental transformation journey, from a distributor to a tech protection and support company,” and that the brand change was necessary to “accurately reflect this profound shift.”[1]
Meaning and Symbolism
The 2014 Brightstar logo’s color palette was explicitly tied to the company’s name. Claure stated that the colors were designed to reflect the sun, described as the “brightest star” in the universe, a direct reference to the Brightstar name.[2] The tagline “Serving Wireless” was added to communicate the company’s role serving the wireless ecosystem.[2]
Typography and Design
The Likewize wordmark, introduced in 2021, was designed by the London creative agency SomeOne. The name, written in a bespoke typeface, acts as the logo itself. SomeOne founder Simon Manchipp explained that keeping the wordmark simple while giving it a bespoke typeface was “an incredibly powerful way of increasing brand awareness and recognition across lots of different channels.”[4]
The Likewize identity also featured a hot pink color palette, chosen after SomeOne conducted research across the sector. Manchipp noted that pink was “still on the warm spectrum yet it’s bold and memorable,” and that it challenged the typically male-dominated world of technology. The dots on the two “i”s and the full stop at the end of the wordmark connected to a broader visual identity centered on dotted patterns and grids.[4]
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