10 years of JUMP: the logo evolution

10 years ago, a creative and a digital expert sharing office space in Newcastle came to the decision that two heads were better than one. With the exciting possibility to “design it, build it, launch it and support it” all under one roof – both teams joined forces and dared to JUMP. If you ask Lucy who came up with the name she’ll tell you it came to her in a dream, but ask Rob and he too will claim some responsibility for its origins. Other urban myths surrounding the subject suggest it came from a staff competition, but the final agreement (for everyone’s sake) is that it all came down to teamwork. Regardless, one leap of faith later and JUMP was born, having existed ever since to help clients reach their own heights; you say “jump”, we say “how high?”

2007

In 2007, JUMP went to work with a small team of 10, trying to build a reputation as a respected design and digital agency in Newcastle. So what about the logo? This would show JUMP in its simplest form through the use of a mark or icon and serve as an immediate form of identification. Just like when designing a logo for a client or company, a lot of time was spent considering who JUMP would be if it were a singular person and what it should represent.

The original inspiration for the logo came from the Munich Olympic icons of 1972 designed by German native, Oli Aicher. The icons were designed using fundamental shapes that lacked any unnecessary elements, yet when put together, created something that was both incredibly dynamic and diverse. Even more importantly they served as a way to break down barriers and create communications through a concise and clean system. It felt like they represented JUMP’s own goals and objectives within the design and digital sector.

With that decided, one of the original JUMPers, Levante Toni from Bologna, Italy, set to work on the logo. Visiting an Iron Maiden concert the night before, he named our new mascot Eddie, with particular thanks to one of the inflatables on stage. Soon Eddie was jumping through a variety of marketing materials from biscuit tins to brochures, even taking pride of place on the JUMP internal manual and allowing for a whole family of Eddie’s to be born.

2013

Now with 6 years of hard work underway, JUMP was working to establish itself even further as an agency, evolving and growing along the way. It was decided that a new logo as well as a fresh rebrand, would be necessary to reflect that change. And what was being realised both in the design and digital team was that one value was constant – the work was the most important asset. It had become custom to take a step back and let the work speak for itself and clients, stripping everything else away to let what really mattered do the talking. This was very typical of the style too, which was prided on being thoughtful as well as clean, crisp and sharp. One saying in particular had become a mantra in everyone's minds: “Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing else to take away.”

From a functional point of view, the new logo needed to act as a canvas for showing off the work, the clients and the thinking. This was used this to form the basis of the next (and current) logo, which would also tie in with the updated workspace – a clean, open space with room for exciting possibilities.

2017 (or, 10 years on)

Overtime, logos tend to take on their missions, values, history and legacy. Now, 10 years on, JUMP’s logo is an extension of its brand philosophy. From that first leap of faith still evident in the letters to the blank canvas that holds space for possibilities, this minimalist approach is all about focusing on what really matters and leaving out what does not.

On a personal note, both our team and our clients have played a massive part in its evolution and this is something that we can’t wait to keep building on. So here’s to the next 10 years…