IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/joreco/v88y2026ics0969698925003261.html

Beyond consistency: The role of logo variability in brand extensions

Author

Listed:
  • Chen, Bo

Abstract

Brand logos can vary in different dimensions, such as color, shape, and theme, across different contexts, especially in today's digital environment. However, little research has paid attention to this phenomenon. This study introduces a novel dimension of brand logos: logo variability, and investigates its influences on consumers' evaluations of brand extensions. Across three experimental studies, this research shows that brand logos of a higher level of variability can enhance consumers' evaluation of brand extensions that are conceptually distant to the parent brand. In contrast, traditional, non-variable logos are more beneficial for brand extensions that are closely related to the parent brand. Furthermore, the interaction between brand logo variability and extensions closeness is mediated by consumers' perception of the fit between the extensions and the parent brand. This research contributes to the brand logo and brand extension literature, and offer insightful advice on logo design for brand managers.

Suggested Citation

  • Chen, Bo, 2026. "Beyond consistency: The role of logo variability in brand extensions," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:joreco:v:88:y:2026:i:c:s0969698925003261
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104547
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969698925003261
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jretconser.2025.104547?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. S. Adam Brasel & Henrik Hagtvedt, 2016. "Living brands: consumer responses to animated brand logos," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 44(5), pages 639-653, September.
    2. Brigitte Muller & Bruno Kocher & Antoine Crettaz, 2013. "The effects of visual rejuvenation through brand logos," Post-Print hal-00772061, HAL.
    3. Esther Liu, Qianqian & He, Dongjin & Jiang, Yuwei, 2025. "Loose = fun? How interstitial space in brand logos affects product perception," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    4. Ryan Dew & Asim Ansari & Olivier Toubia, 2022. "Letting Logos Speak: Leveraging Multiview Representation Learning for Data-Driven Branding and Logo Design," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 41(2), pages 401-425, March.
    5. Michael F. Walsh & Annie Peng Cui & Deborah J. MacInnis, 2019. "How to successfully introduce logo redesigns," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 26(4), pages 365-375, July.
    6. Septianto, Felix & Paramita, Widya, 2021. "Cute brand logo enhances favorable brand attitude: The moderating role of hope," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    7. Septianto, Felix & Kwon, Junbum, 2022. "Too cute to be bad? Cute brand logo reduces consumer punishment following brand transgressions," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 39(4), pages 1108-1126.
    8. Tang, Bingxin & Lyu, Bei & Wan, Ziyuan, 2025. "When the elephant aligns with the ant: Brand prominence strategies in asymmetric Co-branding," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    9. Bao, Yeqing & Sheng, Shibin & Nkwocha, Innocent, 2010. "Product difficulty incongruity and consumer evaluations of brand extensions," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 17(5), pages 340-348.
    10. Yu-Shan Athena Chen & Lien-Ti Bei, 2019. "Free the brand: How a logo frame influences the potentiality of brand extensions," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 26(4), pages 349-364, July.
    11. Ari-Matti Erjansola & Jukka Lipponen & Kimmo Vehkalahti & Hanna-Mari Aula & Anna-Maija Pirttilä-Backman, 2021. "From the brand logo to brand associations and the corporate identity: visual and identity-based logo associations in a university merger," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 28(3), pages 241-253, May.
    12. Zhang, Yicong & Guo, Xiaoling & Qu, Yifan, 2025. "Brand extension or co-branding: The consumer's attribution of responsibility to the crossover strategies of heritage brands," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    13. Yoo, Jinyoung Jinnie, 2023. "Visual strategies of luxury and fast fashion brands on Instagram and their effects on user engagement," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    14. Yuwei Jiang & Gerald J. Gorn & Maria Galli & Amitava Chattopadhyay, 2016. "Does Your Company Have the Right Logo? How and Why Circular- and Angular-Logo Shapes Influence Brand Attribute Judgments," Journal of Consumer Research, Oxford University Press, vol. 42(5), pages 709-726.
    15. Müller, Brigitte & Kocher, Bruno & Crettaz, Antoine, 2013. "The effects of visual rejuvenation through brand logos," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 66(1), pages 82-88.
    16. Li, Ruiqin & Wang, Yan & Zhang, Hongli, 2023. "The shape of premiumness: Logo Shape's effects on perceived brand premiumness and brand preference," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    17. Baxter, Stacey M. & Ilicic, Jasmina, 2018. "May the force drag your dynamic logo: The brand work-energy effect," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 509-523.
    18. Talke, Katrin & Müller, Sebastian & Wieringa, Jaap E., 2017. "A matter of perspective: Design newness and its performance effects," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 399-413.
    19. Niek Althuizen & Bo Chen, 2022. "Crowdsourcing Ideas Using Product Prototypes: The Joint Effect of Prototype Enhancement and the Product Design Goal on Idea Novelty," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(4), pages 3008-3025, April.
    20. Park, JungKun & Ahn, Suhyoung, 2025. "Unpacking masstige brand perception: A multimethod study on value dimensions and brand extension," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    21. Huifang Mao & H. Shanker Krishnan, 2006. "Effects of Prototype and Exemplar Fit on Brand Extension Evaluations: A Two-Process Contingency Model," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 33(1), pages 41-49, June.
    22. Wu, Yi & Cai, Yuanyuan & Zhou, Xiaohan & Huang, Xinyi, 2024. "Shaping extendibility: The influence of circular versus angular shapes on consumer brand extension evaluation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    23. Park, C. Whan & Eisingerich, Andreas B. & Pol, Gratiana & Park, Jason Whan, 2013. "The role of brand logos in firm performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 180-187.
    24. Brigitte Muller & Bruno Kocher & Antoine Crettaz, 2013. "The effects of visual rejuvenation through brand logos," Post-Print hal-01810515, HAL.
    25. Japutra, Arnold & Molinillo, Sebastian & Wang, Shasha, 2018. "Aesthetic or self-expressiveness? Linking brand logo benefits, brand stereotypes and relationship quality," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 191-200.
    26. Pontes, Nicolas & Palmeira, Mauricio & Jevons, Colin, 2017. "Brand expertise and perceived consistency reversals on vertical line extensions: The moderating role of extension direction," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 209-218.
    27. Deng, Qian (Claire) & Messinger, Paul R., 2022. "Dimensions of brand-extension fit," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 764-787.
    28. Quach, Sara & Septianto, Felix & Thaichon, Park & Nasution, Reza Ashari, 2022. "The role of art infusion in enhancing pro-environmental luxury brand advertising," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Pati, Arnav & Pradhan, Debasis & Moharana, Tapas Ranjan & Chaudhuri, Himadri Roy & Rup, Bikash Kumar, 2025. "Forty Years of Brand Logo Literature: A Review and Future Research Directions," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    2. Baek, Tae Hyun & Yim, Mark Yi-Cheon & Park, Jooyoung & Cho, Areum, 2026. "Disruptive but costly: How upside-down logos backfire in consumer responses to brands," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    3. Zhou, Fei & Su, Qiulai & Mou, Jian, 2021. "Understanding the effect of website logos as animated spokescharacters on the advertising: A lens of parasocial interaction relationship," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    4. Septianto, Felix & Kwon, Junbum, 2022. "Too cute to be bad? Cute brand logo reduces consumer punishment following brand transgressions," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 39(4), pages 1108-1126.
    5. Chen, Jiuqi & Liu, Xin & Feng, Wenjin & Meng, Lu Monroe, 2025. "The visual language of brand logos: Exploring the relationship between logo simplicity and perceptions of brand warmth and competence," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    6. Grzegorz Godlewski & Adam Marciniak & Anna M. Zarzycka, 2023. "Logotype as a Tool in Marketing Communication: An Analysisof Websites of Agritourism Farms," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, December.
    7. Teng, Lefa & Xie, Chenxin & Liu, Tianjiao & Wang, Fan & Foti, Lianne, 2021. "The effects of uppercase vs. lowercase letters on consumers’ perceptions and brand attitudes," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 164-175.
    8. Tarunija Chandra & Vibhuti Tripathi, 2023. "Antecedents and Mediators for Building and Integrated Research Framework towards Successful Brand Revitalisation," Central European Business Review, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2023(1), pages 133-163.
    9. Li, Ruiqin & Wang, Yan & Zhang, Hongli, 2023. "The shape of premiumness: Logo Shape's effects on perceived brand premiumness and brand preference," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    10. Séraphin, Hugues & Ambaye, Michele & Gowreesunkar, Vanessa & Bonnardel, Valérie, 2016. "A marketing research tool for destination marketing organizations' logo design," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 5022-5027.
    11. Baxter, Stacey M. & Ilicic, Jasmina, 2018. "May the force drag your dynamic logo: The brand work-energy effect," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 509-523.
    12. Emanuela Maria AVRAM, 2019. "Brand Logo Perception In A Globalized Society," SEA - Practical Application of Science, Romanian Foundation for Business Intelligence, Editorial Department, issue 19, pages 39-46, May.
    13. Muhammad Rashid Rafiq & Rai Imtiaz Hussain & Shahbaz Hussain, 2020. "The Impact of Logo Shapes Redesign on Brand Loyalty and Repurchase Intentions through Brand Attitude," International Review of Management and Marketing, Econjournals, vol. 10(5), pages 117-126.
    14. Zheng, Lijing & Zhu, Yi, 2026. "Visualizing brand longevity: How logo concreteness shapes consumer perceptions of brand age," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    15. Guido, Gianluigi & Pichierri, Marco & Nataraajan, Rajan & Pino, Giovanni, 2016. "Animated logos in mobile marketing communications: The roles of logo movement directions and trajectories," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(12), pages 6048-6057.
    16. Giese, Joan L. & Malkewitz, Keven & Orth, Ulrich R. & Henderson, Pamela W., 2014. "Advancing the aesthetic middle principle: Trade-offs in design attractiveness and strength," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(6), pages 1154-1161.
    17. Ahmad Daryanto & Nicholas Alexander & Gilang Kartika, 2022. "The anthropomorphic brand logo and its effect on perceived functional performance," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 29(3), pages 287-300, May.
    18. Septianto, Felix & Paramita, Widya, 2021. "Cute brand logo enhances favorable brand attitude: The moderating role of hope," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    19. Živa Kolbl & Maja Konečnik Ruzzier & Tomaž Kolar, 2015. "Brand Revitalization: Don't Let Your Brands Turn into Sleepyheads," Central European Business Review, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2015(2), pages 5-11.
    20. Gabrielyan, Gnel & Just, David R., 2022. "The Effect of Logo Visibility on Brand Recognition and Willingness to Pay," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322354, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:joreco:v:88:y:2026:i:c:s0969698925003261. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-retailing-and-consumer-services .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.