Walmart’s New Look Is Dividing the Internet—Here’s Why
We’ve barely crossed the threshold of 2025, and Walmart is already ruffling the feathers of its fanatical customer base. No, it didn’t raise prices on your favorite products. And, nope, it didn’t propose a televised Target vs. Walmart steel cage match (although we would totally watch).
Instead, Walmart gave its logo a makeover fit for modern timesat least that was the idea. But people, well, they have feelings. Big feelings. Huge.
So grab a seat (and maybe a magnifying glass), and let’s dig in to the retailer’s rebranding, the internet’s response and more fascinating facts about Walmart’s history and future.
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How did Walmart revamp its logo?
Perhaps a more appropriate question is: Did Walmart revamp its logo? Yes, but it did so with a light hand. The rebranding is subtleas in barely noticeable.
The wordmark, aka the text-only logo that reads Walmart, uses an updated font (which, frankly, looks pretty similar to the old font) inspired by Walmart founder Sam Walton’s classic trucker hat.
The Walmart “spark” (the yellow sunburst logo) also received a little makeover. Emphasis on little. The company says it now “exudes the energy of Walmart and remains a beacon that guides customers through all facets of the Walmart experience.” We say it’s a little bit rounder and a little bit thicker. (Now would be a good time to break out that magnifying glass.)
As for the color palette, Walmart gave it a glow-up too. Don’t believe us? Take a closer look. It’s another subtle tweak, but the colors appear brighter. The names of the new shades are True Blue and Spark Yellow.
What are people saying about this change?
Oh, they’re saying a lot about very little. Largely, folks are unimpressed by this brand refresh and using humor to convey exactly how they feel.
One of the most common sentiments is disbelief that someone got paid for such a subtle refresh. Others liken the update to a child’s drawing, with one hilariously writing, “A lot of people are hating on the Walmart logo redesign, but if you’ve ever been a third grade girl, you can tell that the new logo is completely differentthe old one is a sun, and the new one is a flower.” And yet others are annoyed the company spent time and money on this “change,” yet the retailer still doesn’t offer Apple Pay.
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While no one seems necessarily excited about this change, aside from Walmart and, presumably, the company that designed the logo, experts insist every brand could use a refresh. And it appears even the smallest updates get people talking.
Was the most recent change worth it?
Branding experts argue that, yes, it was worth it.
“The awareness of the brand is so high that to completely change it would invite even more ire,” says Bruno Benedini, founder of branding firm Taillight. “[It’s] like what happened with the Gap, when their rebrand offended customers so much that they had to backpedal and return to their original identity. This keeps the brand that everyone already knows relatively intact while communicating the idea that it’s still able to grow and evolve, without tarnishing its legacy.”
Besides, as Benedini points out, people were likely going to weigh in no matter what. (When has the internet ever passed up the opportunity to roast a megacorporation?) A more substantial change might have led to angry responses instead of silly jokes.
So, yes, the change is subtle, but even small updates can be powerful for a brand, says Christena Garduno, CEO of Media Culture, a performance marketing agency. “Walmart’s latest logo update, while minor, has strategic implications for brand management and market positioning,” she says. “Even little changes might indicate a company’s development and dedication to keeping current, enhancing brand relevance in a competitive retail market.”
What is the symbolism behind Walmart’s logo?
According to Walmart lore, a certain aspect of the logo, known as the spark, is meant to evoke the spark of inspiration Sam Walton had when he opened the first store in 1962. If you look closely, the spark has six prongs, each of which is supposed to stand for one of the company’s six core values: customer, respect, integrity, associates, service and excellence.
What big changes has Walmart made to its logo over the years?
In total, the company logo has gone through five true iterationssix if you count this latest revamp, though much of the internet does not.
1960s
The original Walmart logo from 1962 was just the word Walmart spelled out in all caps using a fairly basic font in a blue hue. According to the Walmart Museum, the font was “chosen at the whim of the printer.”
Two years later, the company swapped it for a “frontier” font in black, adding a hyphen to the all-caps Wal-Mart. This look stuck around for 17 years, until Walmart rebranded in 1981.
1980s
For the ’80s rebrand, the company returned to a simple, bold font, ditching the frontier font it had been using for nearly two decades.
1990s
In 1992, the retailer changed things up again, using a basic font in a bold navy-blue shade and replacing the hyphen in Wal-Mart with a star.
2000s
Easily the biggest change to the Walmart logo arrived in 2008, when the company dropped the star and hyphen altogether and ditched its all-caps format. Since then, the wordmark has read Walmart (with all letters after the W in lowercase), with the now-familiar yellow spark design at the end.
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Sources:
- Bruno Benedini, founder of branding firm Taillight; interview, January 2025
- Christena Garduno, CEO of marketing agency Media Culture; interview, January 2025
- Walmart Digital Museum: “Take a journey through Walmart’s heritage”
- @stockedup.university on Instagram
- @entreprneurinsights on Instagram
- KelleyKga on X
- Erica Thomas on Facebook
- @leverage.money on Instagram
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