Visual communication platform Canva is on a mission to empower global design, transforming how millions of individuals approach design by providing tools that have helped them achieve their creative goals. As a designer trained exclusively in Adobe products, I remember the initial reaction to Canva was mixed. Some felt threatened by the idea of anyone being able to design; others doubted it could ever rival Adobe, while some viewed it as just another tool to add to their skill set.
Now, more than a decade later, Canva is turning its focus toward organizations, offering a suite of design and productivity tools tailored to the visual communication needs of workplaces around the world. As remote and distributed work environments become the norm, Canva’s updated brand system addresses the escalating demand for effective collaboration around visual communication.
The product updates prompted Canva to reconsider its brand strategy, with key questions driving the effort: Can Canva maintain its distinctive voice while reaching new audiences? Can it balance global scalability with local relevance?
The updated brand system builds on Canva’s established global identity, characterized by its distinctive gradient, hand-crafted logo, and custom typeface. The refresh simplifies and amplifies these elements, creating space for dynamic visual content that reflects Canva’s diverse user base.
Key features of the refreshed brand system include:
Building a platform for content: Inspired by how Canva enables users, the refreshed brand system leans into its role as a platform for flexible content. Core brand assets remain fixed, while flexible brand elements can be tailored, allowing the brand to scale globally while maintaining its connection locally.
Uniting brand and product: Design layouts that more closely mirror how you flow through Canva’s interface—from inspiring content scrolls to pages that drag and drop to immersive full-screen moments.
Spotlighting work in progress: The act of making often brings the most joy. Canva’s new system celebrates this, spotlighting design at work instead of the finished product: a brand in motion, even when static.
Humanizing the UI: Cursors, comments, and bespoke emojis come alive across every brand touchpoint to tell human stories of connection and collaboration.
Amplifying brand voice: Fresh messaging dials up the brand’s playful personality, bucking the trend of speaking in corporate buzzwords.
Empowering through accessibility: A simplified color palette reflects Canva’s view that empowerment and accessibility go hand in hand, with updates to meet AA’s strong accessibility standards for every color.
Canva’s creative team used its tools to execute the brand refresh consistently across 4,000-plus members in more than 40 countries. This approach incorporated custom brand templates, AI-powered voice tools, and a comprehensive brand kit.
The redesign also involved collaborations with creative agencies Vucko, which developed an updated motion system to bring personality to the brand’s movement, and Buck, which created a custom emoji style reflecting Canva’s color gradients and playful spirit.
Canva has championed the democratization of design for more than ten years, making design accessible to millions regardless of their creative background. With over 190 million monthly active users and annual revenue surpassing $2.3 billion, Canva’s impact on the design world is unmistakable. This brand refresh marks a new chapter for Canva, poised to further its mission of empowering creativity and collaboration on a global scale.
