Amazon Tweaks App Logo After Unfavorable Comparisons to Adolf Hitler's Mustache

By Joshua Summers Mar 04 2021, 06:54 AM EST

An Amazon logo is seen inside the Amazon corporate headquarters on June 16, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. Amazon announced that it will buy Whole Foods Market, Inc. for over $13 billion. David Ryder/Getty Images

The Amazon app logo has been quietly changed after the recent redesign drew unfavorable comparisons to the mustache worn by Adolf Hitler.

Rebranding is one of the marketing tactics that companies worldwide have turned to attract more customers in their business. The redesigning of one's logo or even introducing a new app icon in the present age is a big deal since it will be the brand's identity. However, observers and customers said the recent redesign Amazon logo bore an unfortunate resemblance to a toothbrush mustache similar to the Nazi dictator.

Because of the uptick in remarks from different people, the e-commerce giant has silently updated its app logo. The Verge reported that Amazon updated its logo to a less problematic new look.

Amazon Logo

It can be recalled that the previous logo of the company before its update comes with the name of the brand with an arrow that depicts a smile.

According to Logaster, the designer of Amazon's previous logo, Turner Duckworth, said the smile that depicts an arrow that points from A to Z symbolizes the brand's wide variety of products.

On the other hand, the recent update on the Amazon logo shows a different version wherein a strip of blue tape sits over an Amazon "smile" logo. The blue tape's jagged cut on the ends over the smile on a brown box made observers compared it to a toothbrush-style mustache similar to Adolf Hitler.

Chief executive of Coley Porter Bell, Vicky Bullen, said in a BBC report that "unfortunately for Amazon, the visualization of their parcel tape on the original logo will immediately be associated as Hitlerisque mustache, as that shape is forever embedded in our brains... not the best association for a brand that wants to create delight on the doorstep."

Vanity Fair noted that Adolf Hitler's toothbrush mustache is one of the most powerful symbols of the last century, representing infinite evil. Before it was associated with Adolf Hitler, the toothbrush mustache was originally popularized by comedians like Charlie Chaplin in the early 1900s.

According to BBC, Amazon now changed the design to a folded blue tape.

Reactions on Amazon Logo's Resemblance to Adolf Hitler's Mustache

An Amazon spokesperson said the company is always exploring new ways to "delight our customers."

"We designed the new icon to spark anticipation, excitement, and joy when customers start their shopping journey on their phone, just as they do when they see our boxes on their doorstep," the spokesperson added.

Customers and fans of the online store have mixed opinions regarding Amazon's update on its logo. Twitter user @1904irrelevants expressed his frustrations over the app logo's resemblance to Adolf Hitler's mustache, while @superca09447055 was shocked with the update. Meanwhile, Twitter user @zedsback20121 said that Amazon giving its employees a proper wage would be a better move.