Elle Logo PNG
The Elle logo is classic and sleek. The emblem speaks to the standards of female beauty and moderate extravagance. The publication teaches women individuality while helping them remain noble and deserving of respect.
Elle began in postwar Paris and was founded by Hélène Gordon-Lazareff, a Russian-born editor raised in France. Before World War II, she had worked with leading fashion magazines, including Vogue. During the war, she lived in New York with her husband, journalist Pierre Lazareff, then returned to liberated Paris in 1944 and began building a new women’s magazine.
The first issue appeared on November 21, 1945, with actress Yolande Boulanger on the cover in an Elsa Schiaparelli outfit. Its circulation reached 110,000 copies, a strong result for a country recovering from war. The name means “she” in French, and the slogan “Si elle lit, elle lit Elle” helped define the magazine’s early public image.
Elle differed from many women’s titles of the period by writing about politics, feminism, and voting rights, not only home life. It also printed patterns based on young couturiers’ designs, giving readers a practical link to high fashion. In the 1950s and 1960s, the magazine became closely tied to French style, though by the 1970s it began losing ground.
A new phase started in 1981, when Daniel Filipacchi and Jean-Luc Lagardère acquired Hachette’s magazine division, which included Elle. The brand expanded abroad: Japan had launched in 1969, while the U.S. and U.K. editions appeared in 1985, followed by Spain, Italy, Hong Kong, Germany, China, Sweden, Greece, and Russia in 1996. Elle Décor started in 1989; Elle went online in 2007; and in 2018, Lagardère sold the French edition to Czech Media Invest while keeping global brand rights.
Meaning and History
Since its inception almost 80 years ago, the magazine’s emblem has remained unchanged, representing the tabloid as a model of fashion, taste, and beauty. The font conveys the magazine’s overall style, with quality journalism and a detailed consideration of all issues. Serious topics such as politics, legislative changes, the electoral process, and others have also found a place on the magazine’s pages. Every serif of the logo conveys seriousness and a sense of lightness. It’s no coincidence that the publication’s slogan is “serious about frivolous, easy about serious.”
What is Elle?
It’s a French women’s fashion magazine that is subscribed to by 21 million women and read online by more than 370 million each month. It is translated into 29 languages and owned by Czech Media Invest. Its headquarters are in Paris.
1945 – today
The publication’s logo consists of the title in large, serifed capital letters.
Translated from French, the name means “she” and points to the publication’s focus on a female audience. Interestingly, the name resonates with that of the magazine’s founder, Hélène Gordon-Lazareff, suggesting that a woman conceived Elle.
The pronoun indicates a composite image. Covering issues hypothetically interesting to all representatives of the female sex.
The letters of the inscription appear elongated at the top, hinting at the female figure’s slimness and grace. A model standard of thinness and tall stature. This approach shows that the magazine focuses heavily on fashion and style.
The presence of serifs points to a sharp, attentive mind capable of logic and understanding details. Each magazine article is a complete example with interesting hooks and a clear, logical presentation of information. In the style of the letters, there is some stiffness and conservatism that convey seriousness and rigor towards the content, as well as an absence of radical or screaming tendencies.
Font and Colors
The inscription is monochrome. The black palette indicates coverage of important issues. The contrast between the white background and the title presents the magazine as a standard of style and classic beauty.
The font of the inscription resembles Didonesque Medium Condensed. The triangular and semi-circular glyphs in each letter resemble a woman’s scarf or neckerchief, which are often depicted in images of French women. They are, like hooks, designed to draw the reader in and captivate with the article’s content.