Is pink branding a strong choice for my business?
Explore the colour pink with us for your business branding
The colour pink is a study in the art of reinvention: it started out for boys, now is associated with girls, but thankfully that is not where this story ends. And that’s not a bad thing, because in business, reinvention is a necessary way to grow and develop, whether through a full rebrand or evolving existing branding.
Branding requires bold, informed choices to engage with new audiences and to continue to resonate with existing ones, so never write off a colour, and certainly not pink. As you’ll find out, the key to using pink as a business in your branding is to understand how it makes people feel and the associations it evokes. To harness feeling and association is to wield power in the modern marketplace where it’s difficult to stand out.
Read on as we look at how pink started out in the work of branding and its twist and turns on the way to where it sits now as a choice for your business band.
This series on colour psychology for businesses and their branding is adapted from Kassia St Clair’s excellent book, ‘The Secret Lives of Colour’. (The beautiful, sought-after hardback version is well worth getting hold of!). The best places to buy ‘The Secret Lives of Colour’ are direct from the publisher, from your local independent bookseller, from bookshop.org or – as a last resort – from Amazon. Although Amazon is cheaper and more convenient, it is not a force for good in the world of books. Please support writers, publishers and small businesses directly if you can.
“The colour [pink] flashed before my eyes. Bright, Impossible, impudent, becoming, life giving, like all the lights and the birds and the fish in the world together… a shocking colour, pure and undiluted”
'Cuisse de Nymphe émue' paint by Farrow & Ball in a panelled bathroom by colour consultant Emma Diaz @byemmadiaz
Pink wall in the background of Sarah Price’s painterly palette garden design for the RHS Chelsea Garden Show 2023. Image @clarecoulson
Wildings is a design agency in Devon. Our studio is based in Torquay, South Devon, and we provide branding for creative, hospitality and lifestyle businesses across Devon and the UK (like garden designers, interior designers, architects, floral designers). In this series, we’re looking at the power of colour in branding for small businesses, and this one is all about the colour pink. We want to help you harness the amazing characteristics of colour to maximise your small business brand: catch up on the previous article, ‘Is red a good colour for my branding?’ or explore the rest of our series on Colour Psychology for business brands →
How did pink become a brand colour (girls vs boys)?
If you think pink is for girls and blue for boys, be prepared to have your assumptions flipped on their head. Pink is a good example of a colour that has gone through a lot of change and been appropriated in modern times by businesses and culture to various ends.
“Pink was the ‘more decided and stronger colour’, while blue was ‘more delicate and dainty’”
Despite many languages deriving the word for pink from the rose flower (which may lead you to believe it originated as a feminine colour), pink was traditionally seen as masculine; blue being the feminine colour. Pink was essentially derived from red, the colour of power and prestige, so it adopted the qualities of red by default. The colour blue was instead associated with the Virgin Mary, perhaps the quintessential female, so inherited female qualities.
Pink took off as a feminine colour in high society in the eighteenth century through fashion choices in dresses, silks and design collections. Women of influence chose pink as a statement colour, specifically because of its close connection with red. In the same way that red was seen as a ‘daring and full-bodied’ colour, women capitalised on pink, seeking it out as a means to be noticed, both for their fashion choices, but also personally, as strong, powerful figures.
This set the trend for the modern associations of pink, flipping from ‘delicate and dainty’ to the ‘more decided and stronger colour’.
“Pink [became] the colour of choice for twentieth-century women who wanted to be both seen and heard”
Fashion designer, Anna Mason, modelling Mason pink paint colour by Edward Bulmer. Image: Edward Bulmer
Rose, Pistachio and Peach Cake by Raquel Ramos from Cau de Sucre
What does the colour pink symbolise?
As with many colours, pink has been through several phases, starting out, as we’ve just seen, as a status symbol and way for the upper classes to derive a sense of belonging. However, modern female movements have driven a backlash against pink and its infantilising and sexualising connotations: the colour of female objectification.
Despite pink’s ups and downs through the centuries, it is possible to make some general comments about what it stands for and symbolises. Overall, the colour pink falls into three broad categories: youthful, feminine and sophistication.
The youthful side of pink
Firstly, youthful: pink carries a lot of energy, being the colour of bubblegum, flamingoes and rosé, so can happily be used to symbolise qualities such as: fun, innocence, edginess, playfulness, excitement.
The feminine side of pink
Secondly, femininity: no surprises here. The original softness of pink, through its connection with the flower and ladies’ fashion, captures evokes things like: romance, tenderness, affection, sweetness, flirtation, sentimentality and calmness.
The sophisticated side of pink
Thirdly, sophistication: pink has great versatility across its tones and shades, so can lend itself to qualities such as sophisticated, seduction and confidence. This is an area that can be explored through the darker, more muted side of its spectrum, which we’ll move onto below.
Pink Christmas flower decoration by Kitten Grayson
How do businesses use the colour pink in branding?
Colour is incredibly powerful at evoking the senses and reinforcing associations, which is why businesses and brands have long sought to utilise colour in their branding. The colour pink is no different, and businesses have rallied around it, depending on the particular shade or tone. in essence, the lighter or brighter the pink tone, the more feminine the brand impact; whereas the darker the share of pink, the more calm and sophisticated its feel. Businesses that go for mid-tones of pink, tend to project a fun, energetic brand.
Think pink, think Barbie
A quintessential example of a brand that has embraced light, bright pink tones is Barbie, manufactured by Mattel. Barbie was originally designed by Ruth Handler and the children’s doll became a mid-century icon in the late 1950s. More recently it rebooted itself as a brand for the modern feminine movement via the Barbie Movie in 2023. Barbie is confident, edgy, flirty and undeniably feminine, which is reflected in its use of bright link in its branding.
How Adobe XD uses pink
Brands that opt for a darker shade of pink are often eclipsed by the fun, feminine ones, but Adobe XD is a good example of a business tapping into pink’s darker side. Adobe XD is part of the wider Adobe family of computer programmes (such as Photoshop or Lightroom) and used for designing website wireframes or the User Experience (UX) or User Interface (UI) of mobile phone applications. Its logo features pink on a park purple background. Given XD is all about creativity and innovation, by tempering the pink with purple, it taps into the dark side of pink to convey calm, confidence and sophistication.
Other brands using mid-pink
As for business that use the mid-tones of pink in their branding, there are many to choose from. Examples include:
Dunkin’ Donuts - Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG, AKA junk food) brand
Cosmopolitan - women’s fashion and lifestyle brand
Johnson & Johnson - babycare brand
Victoria Secret Pink - women’s lingerie brand
Avon - skincare brand
All of these and more besides happily tap into the youthful, feminine side of pink to evoke energy, youthfulness, fun and excitement to one degree or another.
Fondant Pink, Ballet Slipper, Rose and Cotton Candy
Pink brands
There are a number of very famous pink brands - businesses that use the colour pink prominently in their branding. A quick rundown of the top pink brands would likely include (in alphabetical order):
Barbie
Benefit Cosmetics
Cosmopolitan
Dunkin’ Donuts
Flickr
Hello Kitty
Johnson & Johnson
LG
T-Mobile
Victoria’s Secret
An interesting exercise here is then to categorise these pink brands and examine what it tells us about pink brands using the colour.
At least six of the ten are outright feminine brands or aimed at girls or women (Barbie, Benefit Cosmetics, Cosmopolitan, Hello Kitty, Johnson & Johnson and Victoria’s Secret), which reinforces what we’ve said above that the colour pink carries a very strong female association for pink brands.
Three of the pink brands above (Flickr, LG and T-Mobile) are obviously wanting to emphasis their innovative side, so it’s no surprise to see technology and communications in this sub-group.
A minimum of three of the pink brands (Barbie, Dunkin’ Donuts and Hello Kitty) are highly playful, so are evidently tapping into the youthful side of pink.
Overall, from this very quick analysis of some of the most famous and well-known pink brands, we can see that one of the strongest associations with pink brands is the feminine and female side, appealing primarily to women.
That’s not to say that pink brands can’t get impact with other sections of the market, but it’s important to recognise the particular sway a colour can have because of its history.
As such, it’s important to work closely with a brand strategist and designer if you’re considering becoming a pink brand or reinforcing your credentials as a pink brand.
How have businesses reinvented pink for their branding?
Pink provides another classic example of a colour that upends expectations, similar to the renegade side of purple. Because of pink’s female characteristics, it has inevitably garnered a childish reputation: weak, vulnerable, silly, girly and immature. Despite this, it possible for businesses to use pink as a strong positive brand colour, which we’ll touch on here.
As with many other colours, pink has different aspects, so modern brands have subverted the feminine facet of pink. They’ve used the very nature of its femininity to emphasise female strength. Good examples of this are survivors of breast cancer (Cancer Research UK or Breast Cancer Now).
The colour pink therefore becomes a rallying cry for defiant, rebellious and innovative brands that buck the trend and defy all expectations. We’ve mentioned cancer-related charities; other example of brands that seek to differentiate themselves as edgy or progressive include:
Music band Pink Floyd, which was very alternative in its era
T Mobile, the German telecommunications brand, which wants to underline it forward-thinking approach
Electronics manufacturer LG
Ride-sharing app Lyft and photo-sharing app Flickr all fit into this category too
Despite pink’s current image problem - being the colour of sexism; infantilising and sexualising women - it shows it still has the power to create a different narrative by brands that are able to handle it deftly.
No matter how chequered a journey a colour has been on in its history, it can always be resurrected and reinvented to underline strong, positive qualities that can enhance a brand.
The mood board sources and image attribution can be found in our pink pinboard on Pinterest
Is pink a good colour for small business branding?
If you’re a business considering pink for your branding, you need to handle it carefully.
On the one hand, pink has been used historically to signal status and wealth. Traditionally, it closely matched the expensive silk and satin fabrics used in women’s dresses and ribbons. This soft tone earned it the title puce (literally ‘flea’ in French), which became a byword in aristocratic French circles for an elevated colour worthy of the upper classes.
It’s important to note here that puce occupies a shade between brown, pink and grey; so if you want to project luxury and exclusivity, it’s pays to be understated and restrained.
On the other hand, pink reached extreme heights of fashion in the early 20th century in the guise of shocking pink (Pantone 17-2127). At the time, this was a scandalous shade of pink unleashed by fashion house Cartier. Socialise Daisy Fellowes, wearing a bright pink Cartier diamond, was spotted by fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli, spawning a sub-set of neon pink designs and fashion collections.
The lesson for business brands here is that although pink can be used for shock value, this quickly dwindles with volume: bright pink is best used sparingly for maximum impact. The punk movement of the 1970s which commandeered fluorescent tones of pink, but as with all extreme movements, eventually fell by the wayside once it became normalised.
What is strident and brash one year can become irrelevant and pointless the next.
Which independent brands use pink?
There are lots of brands hat lean into pink in their branding. Here’s three of our favourite brands who use pink to its full advantage.
Peggy Porschen is a London based patisserie in Chelsea renowned for their pretty cupcakes and parlours. We visited the Belgravia parlour last summer and the cakes did not disappoint. The tea rooms feature iconic floral decorations that are widely shared on instagram.
Dahlia Beach is run by Andy McDowell and she’s making a name for herself in the horticultural world as a rebel florist. Known for her collections of dahlias, dahlia flower farm and not forgetting her instagram reels Andy’s passion for flowers and building community is inspiring.
Projektityyny is a Nordic home textiles brand based in West Dorset. They are known for their modern take on quilting using Liberty fabrics, needle cord, linens and other textural fabrics. The homewares have a distinct style that imbues quality, timelessness and nostalgia.
Final thoughts on pink for businesses and in branding
The colour pink has had a wild ride since being adopted from the classic English cottage garden flower of the same name. It has had highs and lows , role-reversals and reinventions, but continues to be a viable colour within branding. The key to the colour pink, which applies to all colours, is to understand its associations, connotations and implications, using all those insights to put it to the best possible use. If you’ve done that, pink will no doubt serve you long and hard in your businss branding. All that’s left so say is watch out for the final few instalments on colour psychology and how it feeds into your branding or browse previous articles below.
If you’d like to learn more from us on branding or get visual inspiration, follow Wildings Studio on Instagram or read more of our blogs on branding too.
