IKEA Trumps Ted Kennedy

Over a weekend when most folks thoughts are with the late Senator Ted Kennedy, IKEA of all places is trending higher than the Lion of the Senate.  Why?  Because the worldwide furniture giant (who’s catalog is number three in print distribution, right after the Bible and Harry Potter) has decided to abandon it’s 50+ year relationship with the FUTURA font in favor of *gasp* a free Microsoft screen font, VERDANA.

The online outrage is hilarious:

• “Verdana! BARF!”
• “Like Rachel Ray popping open a case of Ramen”
• “What’s next, Ikea? Comic Sans?”
• “Horrific”
• “Verdana is a rounder, fatter font than Futura. I’d say Ikea is targeting Americans.”
• “Ikea is switching to the ubiquitous typeface Verdana: looks as cheap as its furniture?”
• “Words can’t describe my disgust”

IKEA’s response has been (1) Verdana is free so it makes economic sense (2) Verdana’s characters translate better into other languages, allowing IKEA to use one font for all markets.  “It’s more efficient and cost-effective,” says Ikea spokeswoman Monika Gocic, “I think it’s safe to say we were surprised by the response.”

Gocic continues, “Plus, it’s a simple, modern-looking typeface.”

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.  Good try!

Verdana was created with the Web in mind; Microsoft designer Matthew Carter constructed the type for Internet Explorer and it’s now one of the most often-used fonts in the world.  Verdana was intended to be used on a screen, not on paper, and was designed specifically for that application.  “It has open, wide letterforms with lots of space between characters to aid legibility at small sizes on screen,” explains Simon l’Anson, creative director at Made by Many, a London-based digital-consulting company.  “It doesn’t exhibit any elegance or visual rhythm when set at large sizes.” Carolyn Fraser, a letterpress printer in Melbourne, Australia, explains it this way: “Verdana was designed for the limitations of the Web — it’s dumbed down and overused. It’s a bit like using Lego to build a skyscraper, when steel is clearly a superior choice.”

Futura, on the other hand, is a print-centric font originally designed by Paul Renner. Ikea has been using the font for half a century, and has even commissioned the typeface to be drawn out in more weights and languages specifically for its brand. In fact, it’s called “Ikea Sans.”  “The former [Futura] typeface definitely better reflected Ikea’s design philosophy, giving it a very special, unique flavor that actually fit the company’s style,” says Vitaly Friedman, editor in chief of the online Smashing Magazine, which is dedicated to Web design. “With Verdana being used all across the Web, Ikea’s image not only loses originality, but also credibility and the reputation that the company has built since the 1940s.”

Many believe that the discussion is ridiculous and it’s yet another case of designers imposing their crazy belief system on others.  And yet, like it or not we all make purchasing decisions on a daily basis due in part to the font’s used to convey the message.

Allan Haley, director of Words & Letters at Monotype Imaging, the firm that refined Futura for Ikea said: “It’s a tremendous risk. They are pulling the typographic foundation of their branding out from underneath themselves… People do notice fonts and letters. The general public has become very tuned to it. When a company makes a drastic change to a very strong brand it can have a negative effect. People make buying choices based off brand identity. The brand becomes an old friend and they can feel betrayed; it can seem like it may not be the same company anymore.”

And frankly, Verdana is just plain ugly.  And really, isn’t that the point??

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portions excerpted from Time Magazine and BusinessWeek.