In 1959, the chickens were removed from the brush lettering. Even after the introduction of the 1978 logo, the text of the 1959 logo continued to appear on Kentucky Fried Chicken packaging until 1982, when it was replaced outright.
1978–1991
Designer:
Lippincott & Margulies
Typography:
American Typewriter Bold Condensed (modified)
Launched:
March 24, 1978
On March 24, 1978, Kentucky Fried Chicken's logo was totally overhauled for the first time. It was designed by Lippincott & Marguiles, who had already designed the original 1954 wordmark.
This drastic rebrand also saw the introduction of the mansard roof and the cubic tower on the center front of their restaurants, the first location featuring such opened in Zanesville, Ohio, in March 1978. The Colonel Sanders head icon was also updated significantly (see /Other), becoming a more abstract design.
After several ownership changes throughout the 1970s and 1980s, KFC was acquired by PepsiCo in 1986 following the merger of its former parent, R.J. Reynolds, with Nabisco.
A new, abbreviated logo for Kentucky Fried Chicken was introduced on February 12, 1991, officially adopting the "KFC" acronym. This shortening was due to both the word "fried" no longer being a marketing benefit due to consumers trending toward health-conscious eating, and to emphasize its offerings beyond chicken.
With this logo, the brown shingles of the restaurants' signature mansard roofs were recovered with red plastic strips. The Colonel Sanders head portrait from the 1978 logo was retained, but was slightly streamlined, most noticeably in his glasses and hair, and was also recolored to be blue.
This logo remains at very few locations, more commonly in Canada.
In 1997, KFC underwent a complete rebrand. This rebrand was completed by Landor Associates, which had already designed the 1992 logo for sister chain Taco Bell, with an accompanying design manual drafted by Cincinnati-based firm Pavone Fite Fulwiler. It was introduced alongside the announcement that PepsiCo was to spin off its fast food division into a separate company, Tricon Global Restaurants.
The Colonel portrait used throughout the last two decades was replaced with a stylized bust, with an inline added within the retained, although slightly modified, 1991 wordmark.
As part of the rebrand, an updated building design eschewed the usual mansard roof, now featuring a flat roof with awnings directly above the windows and entrances. The tower was made thicker and more angular, the pyramid shape becoming shallower. Newer restaurants were constructed with the tower on a corner of the front end rather than in the middle. Remodelled restaurants usually kept the tower in its original middle position.
This logo is still seen at some locations around the world; however, it is being phased out in the United States, and was retained in the Philippines until 2007.
On November 14, 2006,[1] the Colonel Sanders portrait was given a facelift, removing his wrinkles and replacing most of the details on his tuxedo with a red apron bearing three white stripes. The wordmark was also modified slightly, with fewer inlines (and in certain cases, none) and thicker serifs.
New and remodelled restaurants with this logo were updated once again, only with awnings flatter than those from the previous logo's era, and only above the windows where the tower stands, as well as having hanging black platforms with the words "WELCOME" and "DRIVE THRU" above the front doors and pick-up window, respectively.
This logo was still used in China until 2021, and several restaurants, both domestically and worldwide, continue to display this era's signage.
2014–2018 (Worldwide except China)
Designer:
Grand Army
Typography:
Unknown
Launched:
2014
The company started using this throwback logo in advertising starting in 2014.
In 2016, the full new look was launched, while keeping some elements from the 2006 logo. Since 2017, the new design has been rolled out worldwide, with some countries using modified forms of it. Also, it is the first logo since the 1991 logo to use just Colonel Sanders' head as the main symbol, albeit modelled after the 2006 logo.
A revised version of the 1959 wordmark was introduced as a secondary in 2014.
In 2016, the 1965 Colonel Sanders portrait would be paired with it, and from 2019, this combination replaced the 2018 KFC logo on North American advertising and packaging.
Internationally, the two are still used together; in North America, this wordmark was paired with the 2018 Colonel portrait in 2023.
2018–present
In late 2018, a new version of the logo was introduced across many countries.
The illustration of Colonel Sanders' head was modified slightly, noticeably by making his right ear clearer to see. The wordmark was altered significantly, taking on a more slab-serif appearance. This logo resembles the KFC Bucket.
Some countries still use previous designs, while others, such as the Philippines, introduced this in 2019, China in 2020, and the US in late 2023.
2026 (tentative)
SVG NEEDED
A new KFC logo is tentatively set to be launched in 2026. While based on the 2018 logo, there are several notable changes. The Colonel Sanders illustration, whilst still based on the 2006 design, has a few additional details added, such as the sides of his shirt collar, as well as a redrawn version of his tie. The bucket shape is now more rounded on the top and bottom, and the "KFC" lettering is now merged with the red stripes, being thicker and having less prominent serifs. The "KFC" lettering can still appear independently from the symbol, taking on an italicized appearance, as with all KFC logos since 1991.
