FontWars

Published on 04/09/2009 10:27pm

Typography is something all designers seem to have an opinion on. It might be an intense opinion or a passing interest, but in all instances there is a favourite font (Scala if you're asking), or maybe two (that's be Sabon). What has been interesting recently is that typography has become a topical subject, and what started with the online community is threatening to come crashing onto a coffee table near you, with the broadsheets reporting it, and shock horror, even the tabloids.

Ikea, a company as responsible as any for bringing design to the masses, and universally admired amongst the design community, now has that very community up in arms. If you're confused, Ikea has changed its global font from Futura to Verdana, and it's kicking off in the design world. With the 2010 catalogue out this week designers are crying fowl that Ikea has ditched history to be hip. The debate is that Futura is a design classic from Paul Renner - it's a designers font. It oozes class, sophistication, and is in keeping with the brand. Verdana is...well...it's universal...it's a universal font...it's a universal online font. Worse than that, it's a universal online font from Microsoft - it's every ones font. As Ikea put it "We use it because everyone else does", and that is not what designers want. 

This is commerce coming ahead of design, which makes perfect sense. Ikea exists to make money, and design is a sub-product. You are reading this in Verdana, and it is pleasant experience (we hope), and very non-offensive. This certainly isn't going to be a marketing faux pas to rival 'new coke', but it will have wide reaching sociological impact. There is a sad irony in the fact that we now live in a world where the most published marketing work on the planet aspires to be less classic, "because everyone else does".

RIP Iconic Ikea Typography - we salute you, and wish you were still here.