Forbes Logo PNG
The Forbes logo conveys a businesslike, serious approach. The emblem adds light aristocratic features and a touch of elegance, suggesting a desire to revive dry data and numbers and make the business world more interesting.
Bertram Charles Forbes was born on May 14, 1880, in Whitehill, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, the tenth child of a shopkeeper. By 14, he was an apprentice at the Dundee Courier, later reporting from Johannesburg and moving to New York in 1904. In 1911, William Randolph Hearst hired him as a columnist and financial editor at the New York American. On September 15, 1917, Forbes and Walter Drey, the magazine’s managing editor, launched Forbes magazine.
The first title was Forbes: Devoted to Doers and Doings. It cost 15 cents per issue or $3 for an annual subscription. B. C. Forbes served as editor-in-chief until he died in 1954. The magazine focused on business people rather than dry financial tables. In the 1920s, it was the only major business magazine in the United States, before Business Week and Fortune entered the market in the early 1930s.
After the 1929 crash, advertising revenue fell, and Forbes gave up his salary for several years to keep the publication alive. Bruce Forbes led the magazine from 1954 to 1964, nearly doubling circulation. Malcolm Forbes then turned it into a global media brand, with early overseas moves including Germany in 1990 and Japan in 1992.
Steve Forbes took over after Malcolm died in 1990. In 1996, David Churbuck founded Forbes.com, which became an early major business site and exposed Stephen Glass’s fraud at The New Republic in 1998. In 2006, Elevation Partners, including Bono, bought a minority stake. In 2014, Integrated Whale Media Investments acquired 90.27% of Forbes, while the Forbes family kept about 5%. In 2021, Forbes reported $165 million in revenue.
Meaning and History
The world-famous magazine was originally called Forbes: Devoted to Doers and Doings. Two acquaintances co-created it: Bertie Charles Forbes, a Scottish-American journalist, and Walter Drey, a Wall Street CEO. The first provided his name and financial support; the second brought his publishing experience. Walter took over as head of B.C. Forbes Publishing Company, and Bertie Charles became the magazine’s editor-in-chief. He remained in this position until his death.
After 1954, the father passed the business to his sons: Bruce Charles Forbes became president and CEO of the company, and Malcolm Forbes served as editor-in-chief of the magazine. They raised the publication’s prestige to a very high level, attracting potential buyers’ attention. Today, the print edition also has an Internet platform. After the 2014 sale, the Hong Kong investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments bought the company that publishes Forbes.
The magazine is world-renowned for its impartial business perspective. It is known for its regular rankings, including lists of the world’s billionaires, planetary influencers, wealthy celebrities, the richest Americans (Forbes 400), and leading international companies (Forbes Global 2000). The magazine uses many logos to stay current and attract readers’ attention.
What is Forbes?
Forbes is a periodical that covers serious topics related to the global economy. Its articles cover issues of science, technology, finance, marketing, investments, politics, business, and more. However, it is best known for its annual rankings of the largest companies and wealthiest individuals. The magazine’s first issue was published in 1917 as Forbes: Devoted to Doers and Doings.
1917 – 1918
The debut issue bore the inscription “Forbes Magazine,” set in two rows and executed in Old English. At the ends of the wide letters, bold dots with miniature curls resembling commas replaced serifs. They were especially pronounced in “F,” “G,” “E,” “Z,” “S,” and “R.” Both “A” had small hook-like protrusions. “B,” “M,” and “I” featured mini serifs.
1918 – 1922
The emblem used thin black letters with classic serifs. There was enough space between the signs so they did not merge. The “R” and “B” were the exceptions in the center. The elongated leg of the first letter went under the second. The authors removed the word “Magazine.”
1922 – 1924
The editors approved a new logo for the magazine’s cover. It was a horizontal black rectangle with two thin white stripes running along the bottom and top of the geometric figure. Between them was the name of the print edition. Lines on both sides connected the letters, making miniature protrusions from curved serifs visible against a dark background.
1924 – 1925
The redesign brought an updated character design. As a result, they got a thin, solid white-and-black outline. The curved serifs have been corrected to be classically flat.
1925 – 1930
The emblem for the next five years consisted of hollow outline marks. They looked large and elongated, and were positioned almost end to end. “F” and “E” had shorter crossbars. The designers kept the serifs.
1930 – 1934
The logo of that time contained a half-figured inscription. The letters in the magazine’s title had very wide sides, connected by short, thin lines. The center strokes of “F” and “E” looked like inward-pointing diagonal triangles with outward edges.
1934 – 1937
After many years of using block letters, the company introduced lowercase letters, with the word “Forbes” in cursive handwriting. The inscription was thin and coherent: the line flowed without interruption, connecting all the signs.
1937
For the first time, the emblem used thin sans-serif uppercase characters. As a result, the title became more expressive, clearer, and easier to read. It was on a light gray background, a horizontal rectangle that almost merged with white and was almost invisible.
1937 – 1938
After experimenting with the grotesque, the logo’s authors decided to bring back the handwritten style. However, they changed the letters’ shapes, leaving only the inscription’s continuity (coherence) with the previous version.
1938
The magazine title became lighter and larger. The symbols were so tightly connected that they almost merged. On the left, each letter was a thin outline; on the right, wide shadows. They gave the letters volume and made the magazine’s title three-dimensional.
1938 – 1939
The designers regrouped the inscription, extending the signs and making them tall and narrow. The designers added a contour strip on the left side to increase convexity.
1939 – 1953
In 1939, the magazine used a large stencil font with elongated black characters.
1953 – 1966
The logo featured a classic serif typeface from the previous version. Moreover, the authors left only “F” large and made all other characters lowercase, even though they were uppercase.
1966 – 1973
The emblem text returned to its original width, resulting in slightly increased letter spacing that improves legibility. The serifs on the signs were tiny.
1973 – 1977
The logo kept the same name, but removed the serifs.
1977 – 1978
The magazine title was bold. The designers squeezed the letter “F,” shortening the protruding lines, and at the “R,” they straightened the right leg. The letters were again very closely spaced.
1978 – 1999
1978 saw a quantum leap in headline design. At that time, a completely different typeface was approved: modern, stylish, and elegant. Only “F” remained in uppercase, while the other characters were converted to lowercase.
1999 – today
The emblem uses an elegant font, with the letters slightly thinner than in the previous version. They also added the “F” curl, replaced the dot on “r” with a short stroke, and removed the bottom serif from “b.” In addition, the title is now colored, which is rare for a business magazine.
Font and Colors
Forbes magazine logo
The history of the Forbes identity’s reincarnation is the evolution of its type because the entire logo consists of text. Serifs dominated earlier versions, while sans dominated the middle years. Now, again, it has returned to small serifs.
A typeface called Nicholas Bold, designed by Nick Shinn, is now in use. The closest free font to it is Buenard Bold Font. The lettering’s color palette has always been restricted to black. In 1999, it turned blue.