Logo Histories

Logo Histories

Tactics – What's the concept?

The concept behind Pentagram's 1977 logo for Japanese cosmetics brand Tactics

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Richard Baird
Jun 10, 2026
∙ Paid
Tactics by Pentagram, 1977

Tactics was a men’s cosmetics brand manufactured by Japanese company Shiseido. Shiseido was founded in 1872 and is still in operation today.

The Tactics logo was designed by Mervyn Kurlansky and Lora Starling at british design studio Pentagram. This was constructed from 64 spaced-out solid squares, with 20 rotated to form the letter ‘T’.

The logo, in its …

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