The chain of children’s entertainment centers has a colorful logo, but more is needed to convey the brand’s essence. The KidZania logo represents joy, excitement, and fun. These are the feelings that arise when you visit an unusual amusement park.
KidZania was created by Mexican entrepreneur Xavier López Ancona, a former venture capital executive at General Electric Capital. In 1996-1997, he and Luis Javier Laresgoiti developed the idea of a “children’s city,” where kids could try adult professions such as pilot, doctor, cook, or bank worker through role play with educational value.
The project needed significant funding, so the founders secured corporate sponsors. Real brands paid to build their own mini-businesses inside the city, gaining visibility with families while covering about 55% of the initial investment. On September 1, 1999, La Ciudad de los Niños opened in the Santa Fe shopping center in Mexico City. The 8,000-square-meter space had streets, buildings, services, currency, and jobs. Instead of the expected 400,000 visitors in the first year, it drew almost 800,000.
In 2001, Laresgoiti left after disagreements over the company’s direction, and López Ancona took full control. The business then moved toward franchising and international expansion. The original Spanish name was replaced with KidZania, built from “kid” and “-zania,” giving the concept the feel of a child-sized nation with its own flag, currency, rights, and president.
A second Mexican location opened in Monterrey in 2006, followed by the first overseas franchise in Tokyo the same year. Jakarta followed in 2008, Osaka and Lisbon in 2010, Kuala Lumpur in 2012, Cairo in 2013, London in 2015, and Moscow in 2016. In family entertainment, KidZania competed with Legoland from Merlin Entertainments and Discovery Cove from SeaWorld, while maintaining a distinct mix of role-play and corporate sponsorship.
Meaning and History
KidZania is a completely new level of the entertainment center. Each unit is a game copy of a real city with streets, buildings, roads, vehicles, theaters, and other objects. The idea is to create such a simulation so that children aged 4 to 14 can learn how cities work and become acquainted with existing professions. This helps children to reveal their talents and learn about the world around them.
In terms of visual identity, family centers also stand out. They are easily recognizable by their sunny, cheerful logo that reflects the essence and philosophy of the company. The management of KidZania is committed to providing families with an exciting and fun experience. That is why playful, energetic colors were chosen as the main colors, and a modern sans-serif typeface was selected for the name design. Each of these nuances demonstrates individuality, creativity, and diversity.
What is KidZania?
KidZania is a unique Mexican company with a web presence. It consists of many centers offering an extensive list of entertainment for the whole family. Various tasks are prepared for the children, and they receive a special kidZo currency. Young visitors can participate in various activities and playfully learn different professions. The project partners are large global companies, including Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, P&G, Crest, etc.
1999 – 2018
The first entertainment center was opened in Mexico in 1999. The idea of creation belongs to the Mexican entrepreneur Javier Lopez Ancona. His creation has become not just an entertainment area but a major project that has won the popularity of many families. The incredible success prompted management to open new outlets abroad, leading to increased activity. Each such center had an identical corporate design, with a bright emblem at its center.
Until 2008, it was a stylish, atmospheric picture, the main features of which resembled a fabulous design. Unusual letters with original tails and sharp ends evoked associations with something fantastic and unreal, and different sizes added playfulness to the logo. In addition, the sign has a special meaning regarding the type of leisure activities in such centers.
The creator positioned KidZania as a real toy-type mini-city. Hence, the sign of the flag, inside of which was a stylized letter K. Such a symbol displays an identity and a clear structural organization. The flag also emphasizes the company’s uniqueness and the features of its operations. The concept is complemented by a pleasant color scheme created by warm, cozy shades.
2018 – today
After a rebrand in 2018, KidZania adopted a stylish new logo featuring more confident lines, a modern concept, and some simplifications to the graphic symbol. A simpler flag replaced the voluminous and detailed picture. The letter K inside the flag has also changed. Similar changes are also observed in the KidZania lettering itself.
Fascinating ponytails, decorative cuts, and sharp ends have been completely removed, and instead, a soft, rounded font with thicker lines has been chosen for the design. Minimalism is evident in this approach, making the emblem more modern and readable. Another feature is its compactness. In the new corporate badge, the distance between the inscription and the flag has been reduced, which also positively affected the overall concept. The logo’s colors remained the same, symbolizing the brand’s unchanging strategy.
Font and Colors
The current KidZania icon is a perfect, balanced image that evokes extremely pleasant associations. The inscription is set in a modern style, similar to sans-serif fonts. This stylish format has soft, smooth lines without serifs and decorative ends. The chosen design testifies to the constant renewal, development, and striving for progress.
In addition, the font is not burdened with additional elements and is distinguished by clearly defined spaces. This makes the inscription readable and quite expressive. Another important nuance is the transfer of the inscription’s first letter directly to the flag. If in the original 1999 logo the letter K appeared both on the flag and at the beginning of the inscription, then in the new version it is only on the flag.
The innovation positively impacted the overall concept, making the logo more original and friendly. Completes the color specification. Despite several important updates, the modern version retains the predecessor’s color scheme. The logo still features muted burgundy and soft orange hues. They show energy, joy, a good mood, and optimism.




