From the Nike Swoosh to Supreme’s box logo.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/nike">Nike - Swoosh</a>
Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman founded Blue Ribbon Sports in 1964 as an importer and distributor of <a href="https://www.goat.com/sneakers/brand/onitsuka-tiger">Onitsuka Tiger sneakers</a>. Toward the end of the decade, the company began to branch out and more seriously explore producing and selling its own footwear styles. In 1971, Knight and Bowerman officially changed their company’s name to Nike, named after the ancient Greek goddess of victory. Of course, they needed a new logo to go along with the aspirational name.&nbsp;
Knight, at the time a teacher at Portland State University, enlisted one of his students, Carolyn Davidson, to design a brand identity for Nike. Not long after, Davidson produced an early iteration of what is now known as the Swoosh: a long, curved check mark resembling wings and signifying motion, perfect for shoes and other sportswear-oriented merchandise. Although by his own account Knight wasn’t initially enamored with the logo, he paid up all the same: $35 (roughly $250 today).
Initially, that was the only money Davidson saw from her work creating one of the most iconic logos of all time. Fortunately, her contribution was not forgotten. In 1983, a party was thrown in her honor, at which she was presented with an undisclosed number of shares in the company, believed to have been 500. Supposedly, Davidson has never sold these shares, and her stake is now estimated to be worth somewhere around $1 million.
Today, the Swoosh is among the world’s most recognizable symbols, adorning sneakers, apparel, accessories, stadiums and, increasingly, runway designs.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/adidas">adidas - The Three Stripes</a>
As one of the oldest sportswear companies—founded in 1949 but with a history that dates back to the 1920s—adidas is one of few companies whose logo is a textbook example of form following function. Prior to founding adidas, Adolf Dassler and his brother Rudolf ran the Gebrüder Dassler Sportschuhfabrik, a sports shoe company focused on manufacturing running cleats. As a means of adding structural support and integrity to their shoes, the Dassler brothers stitched two stripes on both sides of each shoe, a method that became something of a signature for the company.
The two brothers experienced a severe falling out during World War II, however, and Adolf and Rudolf went their separate ways. The latter went on to create PUMA, while the former launched adidas. Naturally, it wasn’t possible for Adolf to continue using the trademark of his former company, so he added an extra stripe as a mark of distinction, laying the groundwork for the adidas Three Stripes as we know them today.
The Three Stripes can now be found everywhere, appearing in a wide array of interpretations, from the floral Trefoil logo of adidas Originals to the pyramid logo. Even the logo for <a href="https://www.goat.com/collections/yeezy">Kanye West’s Yeezy collection</a> features a horizontal line through the middle of the letter “Z,” a clear reference to adidas’ Three Stripes.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/air-jordan">Jordan Brand - Jumpman and Wings</a>
The brand that birthed sneaker culture as we know it today. It’s only fair then that Jordan Brand should have two iconic logos.&nbsp;
The more common of the two, the Jumpman, originated in a photoshoot for TIME Magazine in 1984—though Jordan was wearing <a href="https://www.goat.com/sneakers/brand/new-balance">New Balance sneakers</a> in this particular photo. A year later, Jordan recreated the pose in a promotional shot for the Air Jordan 1. That image would later be modified into silhouette form to create the Jumpman logo, making its first appearance on the <a href="https://www.goat.com/sneakers/silhouette/air-jordan-3">Air Jordan 3</a>, released in 1988.
The Wings logo, perhaps slightly less well-known than the Jumpman, actually predates it, appearing on the <a href="https://www.goat.com/sneakers/silhouette/air-jordan-1">Air Jordan 1</a> and <a href="https://www.goat.com/sneakers/silhouette/air-jordan-2">Air Jordan 2</a>. Playing on the concepts of Air and Flight native to Nike and Jordan’s shared history, the Wings logo riffs on the flight badges traditionally worn by pilots in the military and on commercial airlines, modified with a basketball at the center of the emblem. Though it was initially eclipsed by the Jumpman, the Wings logo has returned to the center of sneaker culture in recent years, particularly through fashion reimaginings from the likes of Supreme and Dior.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/supreme">Supreme - Box Logo</a>
Supreme’s unmistakable red box with Futura Heavy Oblique font originated as a self-aware, postmodern critique of contemporary consumer culture. The logo is a direct reference to the work of Barbara Kruger, a conceptual artist known for her text-laden artworks which overlay advertisement-esque imagery with subversive political commentary, typically concerning issues such as consumerism, feminist politics, identity and the alienation of modern life.&nbsp;Kruger’s pieces often play on a deliberate incongruity between text and image, and the plural interpretations created by such a space.&nbsp;
There’s something similar going on in Supreme’s logo, placing a word typically associated with royalty, prestige and excellence within the context of New York City’s outsider skating communities. Kruger, for her part, has not been particularly enamored with the association. When asked to comment on Supreme’s lawsuit against another brand for copyright infringement in 2013, Kruger described the situation as a “clusterf— of totally uncool jokers” whose “sadly foolish farce” represented precisely the phenomenon she critiques in her art.
Nevertheless, it’s notable that Supreme’s ascendance from streetwear’s best-kept secret to global sensation occurred at the same time as the rise of social media. This is anything but a coincidence, given how perfectly suited the brand’s logo is for platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Tumblr, bearing a clear textual message in a striking visual style that grabs the viewer’s eye.

Ralph Lauren - Polo Logo
When Ralph Lauren founded his eponymous label in 1967, his aim was to create the quintessential All-American menswear brand. Through sheer vision and talent, Ralph achieved just that, turning his namesake brand into a catchall for all things American, from <a href="https://www.goat.com/editorial/collegiate-varsity-fashion-trend">Ivy League prep</a> to ’90s sportswear.
Despite encompassing so many different eras and cultures, Ralph Lauren’s country club chic aesthetic remains among the most recognized, a look best understood through the collections of Polo Ralph Lauren. Appropriately, the line depicts a polo player on a horse. The design was originally selected for use at a one-off charity event and allegedly picked from a tie pattern swatch. By 1974, the Polo trademark had been registered.
The label began applying the logo across styles, from sleeves and cuffs to the left chest of the now-iconic Ralph Lauren polo shirt. As the Ralph Lauren brand has grown, so has the profile of the Polo logo, appearing on homewares, accessories, fragrances and more. During the 2000s, the label even introduced a Big Pony series of polo shirts, featuring an extra-large embroidered Pony logo on the left chest.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/gucci">Gucci - Stripe &amp; Horsebit</a>
Under the creative direction of Alessandro Michele, Gucci has become a global phenomenon, known for its maximalist and theatrical approach to modern luxury. <a href="https://www.goat.com/editorial/gucci-history">Gucci’s heritage</a>, however, includes a period of producing premium equestrian equipment for the Italian elite. It’s this element which explains the subtle references to horse riding and equestrian activities in much of the brand’s insignia.
The label’s iconic green and red stripe, for example, originated from a particular piece of horse-riding equipment. The saddle girth is a long, thin strip of leather or fabric which attaches to either side of the saddle and runs underneath the horse’s torso, holding the saddle in place. Gucci’s green and red stripe was simply a distinctive, premium approach to that piece of equipment, creating a motif that could also be applied far and wide across the brand’s portfolio.
The Horsebit’s origins also tie back to Gucci’s equestrian days. Applied to a range of accessories, particularly handbags and loafers, the motif is merely a doubled rendition of the rider’s bit that is inserted into the horse’s mouth and attaches to the reins, allowing the rider to guide and control the horse.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/louis-vuitton">Louis Vuitton - Louis Vuitton Monogram</a>
Founded in 1854, Louis Vuitton is one of the oldest and most storied houses in fashion history. The brand’s monogram pattern is only slightly younger, first appearing on the house’s luxury luggage cases in 1896. Louis Vuitton’s trunks were originally treasured for their premium, waterproof construction, but as the 19th century progressed and travel became more widespread, marks of distinction began to take on both a practical and cultural meaning.
Louis’ son, George, designed the LV monogram with this in mind, comprising an interlocking "L" and "V" to signify the brand’s initials, accompanied by a series of emblems built around a diamond shape, modified to resemble a floral pattern. And although it might be a classic today, such outspoken decoration was unusual for its time and quickly separated Louis Vuitton from the competition.
Today, like many of its peers, Louis Vuitton has adapted to the changing fashion landscape, allowing artists, designers and other collaborators to modify and experiment with its esteemed heritage. Japanese artist Takashi Murakami famously worked with LV for 13 years, creating a striking multicolor take on the monogram. More recently, Swiss artist Urs Fischer produced a distorted monogram pattern, while Yayoi Kusama and Richard Prince previously offered their own spins on the design. Tellingly, the late Virgil Abloh famously debuted his first collection with the house by presenting a futuristic take on the monogram in an iridescent synthetic material.

Chanel - Interlocking Cs
Among the most prestigious fashion houses in the world, the elegance of Chanel and its logo resides in its simplicity: two interlocking Cs in white, against a black backdrop. Although the origin seems obvious—the initials of the house’s founder, Coco Chanel—the clarity of the design means there are numerous contending theories as to its provenance.
Officially, however, the interlocking Cs are said to have been inspired by a trip to the Abbey of Aubazine, a chapel roughly 125 miles east of Bordeaux. A stained-glass window in the 12th-century monastery features a geometric pattern of interlocking bands which, when viewed at a certain angle, is suggestive of the same pattern that Chanel would incorporate into her logo.
Today, part of the Chanel logo’s iconic status can be attributed to the work of late designer Karl Lagerfeld, whose immaculate suiting and staunch commitment to a black-and-white color palette embodied the label’s understated sense of luxury. And while the house is notably far more collaboration-averse than its peers, it has occasionally released novelty products bearing the interlocking Cs, including surfboards, boomerangs and tennis balls.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/bape">BAPE - Ape Head</a>
Though the BAPE name seems esoteric on its surface, its meaning can be traced back to two particular apes. Brand founder Nigo was obsessed with the 1968 film Planet of the Apes, and the brand’s name is a reference to “a bathing ape in lukewarm water,” an idiom used to describe an overindulgent individual, such as someone who has bathed so long that the water is no longer hot.
The Ape Head is a stylized twist that blends these two concepts together. Designed by legendary Japanese graphic designer Shinichiro “Sk8thing” Nakamura (who also designed the logos for <a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/icecream">Ice Cream</a> and <a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/billionaire-boys-club">Billionaire Boys Club</a>), it depicts both an artistic version of the type of Japanese macaque you’d see relaxing in a hot spring with the dark, sinister face of one of the main characters in Planet of the Apes.
<a href="https://www.goat.com/editorial/bape-history">As one of streetwear’s earliest and most influential voices</a>, the list of objects on which the Ape Head has appeared is practically endless. The list gets even longer when taking BAPE’s signature 1ST CAMO into account, a variation on traditional camouflage modified to feature the Ape Head throughout the design.

<a href="https://www.goat.com/brand/versace">Versace - Medusa Head</a>
Though Gianni Versace founded his eponymous label in 1978, it wasn’t until 1993 that the Medusa logo made its debut. According to the designer himself, the emblem was inspired by ancient artworks found in ruins around the area in which he grew up. Of course, like the greatest logos, symbolism of Versace’s Medusa Head can be read in more than one way.&nbsp;
Medusa, after all, was a woman who was transformed into a hideous beast as punishment for her vanity. Medusa was also a creature who transfixed any individual who gazed upon her to the extent of turning them into stone—compelling mythology for any luxury fashion brand. Such a hat-tip to both sides of the concept of decadence seems apt for Versace, a label famed for its unapologetic approach to opulence and grandeur.
Today, the Versace logo is ubiquitous throughout the house’s collections and its circular shape lends itself to all manner of accessories, from rings and earrings to necklaces and belt buckles. And like Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton or Alessandro Michele at Gucci, Donatella Versace is not afraid to usher in a new generation of the house by remixing the past.

Dunk Low 'Black White'

Nike x Comme des Garçons PLAY T-Shirt 'White'

Yeezy Boost 350 V2 'Zebra' 2017

Yeezy Slides 'Pure' 2021 Re-Release

Off-White x Wmns Air Jordan 4 Retro SP 'Sail'

Union LA x Air Jordan 2 Retro SP 'Rattan'

Supreme x Burberry Box Logo Tee 'Black'

Supreme x Burberry Denim Trucker Jacket 'Beige'

Vintage Polo by Ralph Lauren Stadium Jacket 'Navy/Red/White'

Vintage Polo by Ralph Lauren P-Wing Bomber Jacket 'Navy/Red'

Gucci Web Slide 'Black'

Gucci 1995 Horsebit Bag 'Brown Sugar'

Product (RED) x Louis Vuitton Trainer 'Red'

Kanye West x Louis Vuitton Jasper 'Patchwork'

Chanel Wmns Velvet Calfskin & Mixed Fibers Sneaker 'Black'

Chanel Sneaker 'White Black'

BAPE Shark x Tiger Pullover Hoodie 'Black'

JJJJound x Bapesta 'White'

Versace Medusa Logo Print T-Shirt 'White'

Versace Medusa Braided Necklace 'Black'

10 Iconic Brand Logos and the Stories Behind Them

Featuring KAWS x Comme des Garçons, Jean-Michel Basquiat x Dr. Martens and more.

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