“Change is hard to accept, but it is also an inevitable part of life,” said CEO and President Tom Chasse
Formerly known as the Schweitzer Mountain Resort, Schweitzer unveiled a new logo and a simplified name last week. The North Idaho ski resort said, “Going forward, we’re keeping it simple and shifting from ‘Schweitzer Mountain Resort’ to the much friendlier ‘Schweitzer’.”
The resort wrote, “When we examined our logo, which is intended to visually communicate Schweitzer’s unique identity, we realized it wasn’t adequately reflecting who we are today, nor symbolizing the future we aspire to create.”
The emblem includes an “S” that is made up of three symmetrical strokes. The strokes are aligned on a 45 degree angle which recalls the original 1963 blackletter crossbar logo. The emblem symbolizes Schweitzer’s summit, Lake Pend Oreille and the flowing terrain. The green ‘S’ in the new logo, according to the resort, reflects their shift “from a primarily winter destination to a winter and summer destination.”
Along with the new logo, Schweitzer also launched a new wordmark which complements the new logo’s 45-degree angle. The resort has also unveiled two secondary colors: Yellow and orange. While the primary color, green, portrays the resort’s connection to the natural environment, the secondary colors, yellow and orange, convey the resort’s connection to various outdoor activities and clothing.
“These colors match the spirit of our Schweitzer family – alive, vibrant and radiant,” the resort wrote.
The Schweitzer’s new logo made its Facebook debut on April 7 and has not been well received by everyone. “This is a very bad representation for such a historically prestigious North Idaho Ski Resort. These colors are drab and say absolutely NOTHING about winter or skiing, the design is anything but original,” wrote one Facebook user(https://www.facebook.com/Ski.Schweitzer).
Some social media users even noted the logo’s similarity to the Seattle Kraken Ice Hockey emblem. Critics also commented about raised ticket prices and strict mask policy due to Covid-19.
The resort received more than 1,500 comments which prompted CEO and President Tom Chasse to respond publicly, he wrote, “Change is hard to accept, but it is also an inevitable part of life. Every decision Schweitzer makes – a new lift location, glading cut, hotel built and obviously a new logo – generates a ton of opinions, feedback and ways we could have done it better.”
“We launched a logo that we feel connects even closer to our original founders’ vision and we did something most ski areas haven’t – kicking the snowflake to the curb.”
Besides having grown up in the design Industry, Christiaan has advised some of the world’s largest companies on their branding & packaging designs. Has been the resident judge for design awards, and has spoken at numerous global design & marketing events. Christiaan founded the London office of the award-winning Cartils agency, and has founded the DesignBro.com platform.
