Geely Logo PNG
Safety and power come from the company logo. The Geely logo is a composition of separate elements that form a single whole, just as the company comprises many divisions. Their unification allows us to move forward as a united, strong front.
Geely began in the 1980s when entrepreneur Li Shufu started producing refrigerator parts in Zhejiang province. In 1986, he officially registered Zhejiang Geely Holding Group after experimenting with small manufacturing businesses. When stricter regulations damaged the refrigerator market, Li shifted to scooters and motorcycles, turning Geely into one of the first private Chinese companies to produce mopeds.
By the late 1990s, Li wanted to enter the car industry despite restrictions favoring state-owned manufacturers such as Chery Automobile. He acquired a struggling vehicle factory in Sichuan mainly to obtain its production license. On August 8, 1998, Geely produced its first car, the Haoqing, which was partly modeled on the Daihatsu Charade. Nationwide approval for full automobile production arrived in 2001, shortly before China entered the WTO.
The company was reorganized as Zhejiang Geely Holding Group in 2003 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2004. Geely later expanded internationally through acquisitions, including a stake in the London Taxi Company and, eventually, control of the business, which was later renamed LEVC. The major turning point came in 2010 when Geely purchased Volvo Cars from Ford Motor Company for $1.8 billion, one of the largest overseas automotive acquisitions by a Chinese company at the time.
Over the following decade, Geely aggressively expanded through partnerships and new brands. The company launched technology projects with Volvo, acquired Polestar, created Lynk & Co, purchased stakes in Proton and Lotus Cars, and became the largest shareholder of Daimler AG in 2018. In 2021, Geely introduced the electric brand Zeekr.
Meaning and History
Billionaire Li Shufu chose the company’s name when he was still an obscure young man with minimal start-up capital. Geely is an alliteration of the Chinese characters that read “Jílì” and mean “good” or “useful.” This name can be considered a good parting word. The young entrepreneur wished himself and his business good luck, counting on the magical influence of words.
Li Shufu himself also designed the first logo. He used an abstract design – an oval with six protruding diagonal stripes on top. This is a stylized version of the sixes overlaid on top of one another. The symbol is associated with Li, which is translated from Chinese as “six” and also means “smooth.” To some extent, the first emblem embodied the phrase “liùliù dà shùn” (“everything goes smoothly”).
But in the company’s history, not everything has been so perfect. Geely Holding was embroiled in an intellectual property infringement scandal. The automaker Toyota has accused him of using an allegedly stolen logo for the new Meiri model. Despite the two trademarks’ obvious similarity in shape and color, the Japanese corporation lost the case due to an unclear legal standard.
What is Geely?
Geely is a well-known name for Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd. This company is located in China and is owned by local billionaire Li Shufu. It produces various types of vehicles, including commercial transport, pickups, off-road vehicles, crossovers, and passenger cars. It also owns developments in the field of electric and hybrid vehicles.
1986 – 1998
The old Geely logo, created in the 1980s, consisted of several red geometric elements. The base was a large horizontal oval. From it, stripes stretched upward, inclined to the right at approximately 45 degrees. They varied in length because they formed a triangle. Li Shufu wanted the emblem to resemble a mountain peak silhouette, reflecting the landscape of Taichow, where the company was founded. This was a symbol of strength and confidence, as the mountains protected against strong winds and sandstorms. Each of the six lines represented specific Geely values:
- high quality;
- safety;
- comfort;
- durability;
- reliability;
- low prices.
1998 – 2014
When Geely started making cars, it needed a new logo. The design was inspired by a symbol developed in the mid-1980s. The original version was a red oval with six stripes of varying lengths that formed a triangular shape. Li Shufu wanted the drawing to look like a mountain peak silhouette because mountains rose around the city where he founded Geely. Diagonal lines could be interpreted as steps to the highest point of development. And their number was considered a powerful sign of good luck.
Considering all this, the owner of the holding decided to keep the traditional emblem. The designers only repainted it white and placed it inside a blue oval with a wide silver outline. The central elements were outlined in blue with “GEELY” (at the top) and a silver ring frame.
This logo was used as a corporate logo, but it appeared on early Geely Auto models produced from 1998 to 2007. In appearance, it was very similar to the Volvo Car brand name, although the Chinese holding company acquired the brand only in 2010. Probably, the company intentionally or unknowingly copied someone else’s design to go global.
Two circles with a double-edged Geely exactly repeated the structure of the Volvo emblem, and six diagonal lines were associated with the famous arrowhead, which the Swedish concern used to symbolize the planet Mars and its main element, iron. In turn, Geely stripes directed upward personified movement into the future and the expansion of boundaries. In addition, the logo features Volvo’s corporate colors of navy blue and steel gray.
2008 – 2014
In 2008, some Geely Auto products were marketed under the Gleagle brand. Its emblem consisted of two open rings, one round and the other oval. They combined into a single figure resembling an eye with a pupil. A short hook protruded from above, stylized as an element of the Chinese character. The drawing was three-dimensional and silvery, like a real car decoration.
2008 – 2014
In 2008, another Geely Auto subsidiary, Emgrand, appeared. Its logo was very reminiscent of the Cadillac brand name, a coat of arms divided into colored segments. Only the Emgrand had a shape closer to that of car radiator grilles. Inside were six polygons with rounded sides: three red and three black. A grid of light brown lines separated them. The outer frame was gold. The designers added a gradient to make the drawing three-dimensional.
The name Emgrand was written at the bottom, in two versions: Chinese characters and English. An elegant font with truncated ends for the letters “E” and “G” was used in the second case. The caption has been highlighted in black.
2014 – 2019
In 2013, Geely Auto merged its sub-brands into the new Geely brand. The designers decided to keep the Emgrand logo but change its palette. They repainted the grid a dark golden color, replaced the black elements with gray, and used blue polygons instead of red. Despite the update, the six-piece rimmed shield still resembled the classic Cadillac symbol. Below the icon was the light-blue word “GEELY,” reminiscent of the inscription on the 1998-2014 emblem.
2019 – 2023
After the redesign, the logo became elongated and acquired a silver border. The shades of blue and black are not as vibrant as they used to be. The gradient is smoother: it now looks realistic, giving the image depth. The developers expanded the lettering to “GEELY AUTO” and repainted both words gray. All these changes marked the brand’s transition to a new, innovative level, introducing next-generation technologies into cars.
2023 – today
The simplified Geely logo looks more like a Cheshire Cat smile than a car grille. The designers repainted all segments in a single color, intended to symbolize the beginning of a new era of technological products.
The bottom lettering has been shortened to the brand name. The word “GEELY” filled all the available space and again became large, as it was on the 2014-2019 emblem. The flex font has changed a bit, with both “Es” getting a straight top corner. The black-and-white color scheme conveys the company’s openness.
Font and Colors
Geely’s modern emblem was adopted from one of its sub-brands, Emgrand. Many have noted its obvious similarity to the Cadillac trademark due to its distinctive structure. But after the redesign, the associations shrank because the shield became elongated. The streamlined shape of the polygons symbolizes vehicle safety.
The automaker uses an unusual geometric font in uppercase. All the corners of the letters are either straight or rounded. The shape is close to a square. This is a redesigned version of the lettering on the very first Geely logo. The designers made it proportional and equalized the line thickness.
Like 30 years ago, the main colors were blue, gray, and silver. Blue represents the clear sky and the company’s endless possibilities. Dark gray is the earth, the fundamental principle, the connection with traditions. Silver is innovation and the pursuit of modern technology.
