Buying Convenience: Top Ten Mini-Mart Logos
Mini-marts are emporiums of impulse purchases. They offer products that people don’t actively shop for, but merely ‘pick up’ while they are in transit from one place to another. Because impulse purchases are made solely in the spur of the moment, marketing is essential to mini-marts. Although they are ubiquitous in the United States, on nearly every major street corner, few people give a lot of thought to their marketing strategies and food and drink logos. However, as you can see from the following ten logos, mini-marts clearly are working hard on wooing their target audience and branding.
1. QuickChek Logo Design
This is perhaps the most modern mini-mart logo on our list, but it still uses many principles of logo design. The ‘Q’ is designed to look like a bold, thick circle, a friendly and inclusive shape, with a leaf as the dash at the bottom. This gives a greener, more earth-friendly image to a genre that is generally known for being more oriented to speed and convenience. The green color of the logo reinforces this impression. With ecology being one of the key values of many modern consumers, there is no underestimating the effect this has on QuickChek’s success. The company name is written in thin, rounded letters that are friendly as well.
2. AM/PM Logo Design
This mini-mart has a name chosen to communicate the store’s extended hours. The logo further puts across this message, with the colors of the sunrise and the colors of the sunset running through the logo. The colors are oriented so the daytime colors go through the ‘AM’ while the nighttime colors go through the ‘PM’. The rounded, lower case letters are consumer friendly and invite the consumer to stop in at any time, day or night.
3. 7-Eleven Logo Design
This was one of the first mini-marts, with the original hours being from seven in the morning to eleven at night. Now open twenty-four hours a day, the mini-mart has kept this name because it is an important part of the brand. The square is a trustworthy and straightforward shape, but the rounded corners make it a little more friendly. The green is a soothing color, while the red and the orange are eye-catching and stand out in a crowd. Because there are often many mini-marts in an area, standing out is an important part of success in this industry.
4. Circle-K Logo Design
This company name brings images of a ranch or farm, so it is appropriate that the logo look like an old-fashioned brand. This logo also matches the name in that there is a circle around a large K. The friendliness and unity of the circle come into play in several ways here. First, the logo is actually in the shape of a circle, but in addition the letter is rounded. However, the bold colors and thickness of the lettering give a feeling of strength. Red is an attention-getting color that helps the logo stand out.
5. Flying J Logo Design
This mini-mart offers a more modern logo that appeals to modern audiences. Again, the name and logo both resemble a brand in their simplicity and basic circular shape. The friendly circle is seen once again, with a ‘J’ that has been drawn with wings to resemble a plane. Planes denote going places, so this is appropriate for a market on the go. This is reinforced by the slanting writing. The gold color of the logo implies high quality, while the simple black color of the wording along with the basic, sans-serif font give a more common-sense feel without detracting from the simple beauty of the image itself.
6. Love’s Logo Design
This minimart has a very different name from those discussed so far, but it is actually the last name of the original owners. This unusual name, however, is worked into the logo design with a series of overlapping hearts. A serious square adds weight to the image, while the red and yellow color palette is one commonly used by fast food. This logo gets immediate notice, making it a winner.
7. White Hen Logo Design
This regional mini-mart has an unusual name as well, but the logo is different in more ways than that alone. Instead of bold colors, a calming blue is used as the main color along with gold accents. The white hen mentioned in the company name is the central image. While the logo is generally in the shape of a square, there is a circle in the middle to give a friendly feeling. The plain, white writing neither adds to nor detracts from the logo.
8. Allsups Logo Design
This Southwestern mini-mart company has a logo that shows their heritage. The gold and green colors are very different from those seen in other mini-mart logos, but very relevant to this geographical area. The writing is bold and takes center stage. A stylized Southwestern sun is the key graphic, adding the friendliness of the circle to this logo.
9. Speedway/Super America Logo Design
This is actually not one, but two logos, for mini-marts operated by the same company. The logos, however, are very similar. Both use square-like shapes that lend gravity to the design. Both use the same red, white, and blue color palette to draw in the patriotic customer. While they use different fonts, in both cases the initials of the business are the central image. Speed lines imply movement and swiftness, which suggests that these stores are for people on the go. The Super America logo features a more triangular shape along with pointed letters that resemble triangles as well, giving an extra shot of strength to the logo.
10. Pilot Travel Centers Logo Design
Pilot Travel Centers use a red and yellow color palette that is familiar to the industry, along with a few retro elements to appeal to travelers looking for a little piece of nostalgia. The writing is in bold letters that are drawn to be three-dimensional. The letters are square, as is the central shape, but all elements are rounded to add that important friendly touch.
