A global company in the human age
Shin Matsunaga & PAOS' 1988 logo and corporate identity for Japanese educational materials publisher Benesse.
Benesse was founded by Tetsuhiko Fukutake in 1955 as Fukutake Publishing Co., Ltd. It produced educational materials, student handbooks, text books and mock exams for middle school and high school students in Japan.
Tetsuhiko Fukutake, the president at the time (he would later pass in 1984 and be succeeded by his son Soichiro Fukutake), came to renowned design studio PAOS (Bridgestone, Mazda, Daiei) with a concern. He wanted to avoid having the company ‘run its course’ as a regional supplier. His vision was to expand, from literary books to more comprehensive publishing and engage in cultural activities and develop overseas business. Further, Fukutake wanted to improve the performance of ‘information processing’ and use information more intensively. Simply put, his goal was to pave the way for the company to become a global organisation with culture and information at its core.
This change would require a new way of thinking, and position the company for a 21st century global outlook. The first corporate identity (CI) project, initiated in 1979 and undertaken by PAOS was strategic. PAOS put forward a maxim that would serve to guide the company into the future. This was comprised of key words: ‘informatization’, ‘internationalization’ and ‘enculturatization’. This strategic exercise would be followed up in 1988, with the development of a new trading name and visual identity.
Continue reading to understand the idea behind the new name, the concept of the proceeding visual identity and see the basic assets that would make up Fukutake Publishing’s new ‘Benesse’ brand.