Untouched since the 1980s, Jordan’s Furniture gets a sleek rebrand with ergonomic icons

New England’s own Jordan’s Furniture has had a sleek makeover – thanks to Boston-based design director Allie Hughes and TBWA\Chiat\Day, who’ve kept company with brands such as Gatorade, Jack Daniels, Adidas and Pedigree. Jordan’s Furniture is iconic, a company known for its integration into its communities in more ways than just retail. “For a brand that hadn’t visually been touched for over 30 years, with so much charisma, we were ready to dig into its past and uncover its future self,” says Allie.

The furniture chain has always been family-owned, so the CEOs and leadership know what they want as a whole: simplicity, approachability, modernity and playfulness. On top of that, Jordan’s J is a symbol is particularly important to them. “We created a J that felt a little more human, more rested and seated. That simple approach became the foundation of everything else. The dot of the J would take on the personality or what we like to call the ‘wink’,” says Allie. The renewed wordmark drops ‘furniture’, allowing the brand to open up outside of the framework of furniture. However Allie says: “[The CEOs] wanted their loyal customers to still connect the dots within this new identity to the Jordan’s they know and love.” To bring homeware into the picture, from the line and dot of the J the team created a series of ergonomic icons: reclining chairs, beds, lamps and more.

Jordan’s Furniture was “well known for its 80s magenta and cobalt blue” colour palette – but when the team considered dropping those colours to modernise, they found it felt inconsistent and void of its beloved personality. So Allie and her team explored palettes that felt “fresh, fun and energetic”, reflecting Jordan’s Furniture’s relevance in today’s homeware market, utilising colours that evoke the feel of clean, comfortable homes.

On the original typeface CEO Josh Tattleman, said: “I’d be happy if I never saw another scripted font every again.” So, Allie and her team leaned into circular characteristics, shorter and more compact lettering with softer edges and replaced the traditional apostrophe with a dot. The team explored five paths early in the pitch, showing varying degrees of “what a modern Jordan’s could look like” – a range that allowed the artists to play musical chairs with styles faithful and vastly different. Serif executions that felt more familiar, while on the other end of experimentation, the team dabbled in highly expressive designs. The final result finds a sweet spot in the middle: sleek, vibrant and light-hearted.