Kodansha is Japan’s largest publisher, responsible for bringing some of the most incredible stories to the world—from Akira and Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon to non-fiction and children’s books, as well as the discovery of globally renowned author Haruki Murakami. Since its founding in 1909, Kodansha’s work has grown to the point of ubiquity in Japan. Their brand, however, garnered little affinity or credit for their culture-shaping titles.

Celebrating their 112th anniversary, and with its core business evolving across platforms and markets, Kodansha decided to embark on their first holistic global rebrand. The new brand would need to capture Kodansha’s remarkable collaborations with creators, express their newly found dedication to digital experiences and extend Kodansha’s reach and renown beyond the borders of Japan. All of which would stem from a new purpose: Inspire Impossible Stories.

At its core, Kodansha brings creators and fans, tradition and innovation, and a remarkable set of genres and audiences together under one banner. This mix is the means to their inventive storytelling. To convey their unique approach and leave a lasting cultural mark on a global scale, Kodansha needed a revitalized purpose: Inspire Impossible Stories. From here we could create an entire system rooted in their creative approach and storied style.

The result was a logo and system rooted in our core idea of intersection. While active space symbolizes the intersection of their work, the negative space acts as a canvas for their creators and as windows to new worlds that move and inspire readers. Tangentially, the mark resembles a traditional Japanese hanko as well—the signature of quality craftsmanship.

Kodansha’s new brand is a massive, global Identity which encompasses multiple international markets, and a wide range of publishing genres. Alongside a broad range of colors and approachable typography, Kodansha’s symbol is used as a strong graphic element to create unity and to act as a connector between the brand and it’s IP. Derived from the angles of the symbol is a system of panels that can be used to house content and imagery.

The initial focus on the US Market took into consideration: corporate applications, publication design, event design, website, print marketing, digital marketing, a motion system, and an audio/visual mnemonic. The brand was extended to and fine-tuned for the Japanese market alongside new branded merchandise, signage, and a brand film.

The brand is serious and sophisticated enough for a Japanese heritage brand, but future forward, and inclusive enough to account for past and future innovations.

Through this work, and for the first time in the 112-year history, Kodansha has established a global brand. While it is too soon to capture metrics with a launch date of April 15th 2021, from here on the benefits will accumulate, as Kodansha provides and distributes its rich content to a global audience under one brand.

The new identity will serve as a quality signature for the already-successful company and its content, providing the groundwork to continue building deep trust with its audiences. The updated brand will be used to reach out to artists, creators, and other stakeholders around the world, who entrust their works to Kodansha with the promise that they can spread their wings globally with the "K" mark.