New Calgary logo and branding unveiled ahead of Stampede

Calgary’s new logo and branding was unveiled ahead of Stampede on Wednesday, marking a new identity for the city.

The logo, developed by the Calgary Economic Development (CED) and Tourism Calgary, was inspired by beadwork which “captures Calgary’s story as a place of confluence where peoples, lands, cultures and ideas come together.”

The CED said the slogan “Blue Sky City” and the logo is a collective identity that was inspired by Calgary’s diverse voices and tries to incorporate “a broad spectrum of cultures and perspectives.”

There will be red, blue and yellow versions of the logo. The CED said it tried to keep the city’s iconic red featured on key infrastructure such as the Peace Bridge, Calgary Tower and Calgary Transit vehicles. The blue symbolizes “blue sky thinking,” which reflects the sky that unites Calgarians, while the yellow represents the sun and represents Calgary’s future.

The slogan also references Calgary as being one of the sunniest cities in Canada with 333 days of sunshine each year.

1:43 ‘Blue Sky City’ is a new brand with endless possibilities: Calgary Economic Development

“We’ve tapped into our historical look, especially around beadwork. Beadwork has been used for centuries to talk about stories, making stories … The one individual bead makes a great story, but when you combine that with all of the others, it showcases what our community is about,” said Brad Perry, president and CEO of the CED.

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“For us, that was really important to build that sense of understanding. But what the possibilities are when you combine these colours to make something new and exciting.”

This comes after the CED and Tourism Calgary unveiled the new slogan in April, after conducting research which shows Calgary’s former brand (“Be Part Of The Energy”) didn’t resonate with many Calgarians or people outside Alberta.

The two organizations then partnered with the City of Calgary to identify Calgary’s new branding. The CED said 129 organizations across 26 sectors were engaged throughout the process through interviews, workshops, cross-country focus groups and surveys.

The CED said around $1.7 million was invested into brand development and rollout.

“There’s a lot of excitement around tourism right now,” said Alisha Reynolds, president and CEO of Tourism Calgary. 

“Tourism in Calgary is in a really good place, and the city of Calgary has a ton of upward trajectory and positive momentum … We’re hoping to use ‘Blue Sky City’ as a platform to share the optimistic outlook that we have for the city.”