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Kia finally ditches its chintzy logo with total rebrand

Kia builds some great cars these days, and now, they will wear a badge worthy of them.

Sean Szymkowski
It all started with Gran Turismo. From those early PlayStation days, Sean was drawn to anything with four wheels. Prior to joining the Roadshow team, he was a freelance contributor for Motor Authority, The Car Connection and Green Car Reports. As for what's in the garage, Sean owns a 2016 Chevrolet SS, and yes, it has Holden badges.
Sean Szymkowski
2 min read
New Kia logo

That's much better.

Kia

It feels like we've heard about ushering in a new brand logo for years, but on Wednesday, it finally happened. Kia revealed the new logo that it will affix to new vehicles going forward and said we'll learn more about its "new brand purpose and strategy" on Jan. 15. I think this logo swap should have happened with the Stinger's introduction, personally, but better late than never.

See, Kia still hasn't totally shed its image of making bargain-bin cars, and its current logo and branding remain attached to really dumpy cars from decades ago. Today, the Korean company builds some incredible cars across its lineup and they'll finally receive the marketing and branding attention they deserve. That's the company's hope at least.

The blocky font with a simple oval is out in favor of a flowing script to spell out the "Kia" name. The brand said the new logo embodies "symmetry," rhythm" and "rising." It's also supposed to look a lot more like a handwritten stamp of approval from the company while inspiring confidence. Honestly, anything is a major improvement from the outgoing logo.

But wait, there's more. The new logo also comes with a new tagline you'll soon see splashed on Kia ads to come: "Movement that inspires." Kia said this big rebranding moment also comes as it plans to roll out numerous new electric cars in the coming years. We should learn more about those cars and the new brand strategy in just over a week. In the meantime, enjoy the logo's reveal along with a record-setting fireworks show involving the "most unmanned aerial vehicles launching fireworks simultaneously," according to Kia.

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