Analysing the allure of orange

Julia Day
guardian.co.uk, Monday March 5 2001 08.01 GMT

The colour red conjures up undeniably strong images - danger, love and sex. Green is equally provocative - safety, envy and nature all come to mind.

Orange, on the other hand, struggles to say anything specific. It strikes a halfway house between the fiercely strong emotions aroused by red and the cowardly, sometimes sickly, images associated with yellow.

In the past five years, however, it seems to have become one of the most popular corporate colours.

EasyJet, Sainsbury's, Orange and, indeed, MediaGuardian.co.uk have all chosen the hue for their branding.

However, just what it signifies is a matter of dispute that has divided MediaGuardian.co.uk users .

Click on our Talk pages to find out why the colour is considered a no-no for prestigious companies in America but is thought to be a reassuring hue in the UK.

"Is it just me, or is there a proliferation of the colour orange on everything new, forward thinking and revamped at the moment? "Why have we collectively decided this is the hue to be?" asked Jenechka.

Here, the UK's foremost branding experts explain the allure of orange.

Michael Wolff, founder of brand consultant Fourth Room and co-founder of Wolff Olins, the company behind the Orange mobile phone brand, said he first used the colour in a big way in 1965 for Camden council.

"People were unaware of what the council was doing for them but once we'd put orange branding on meals on wheels vans and dust carts, people noticed," he said.

"Orange is a way of using red without its stridency, urgency and alarm - it keeps the vibrancy but is warm and cheery.

"Tesco's red means cheap but Sainsbury's orange is red, but not quite," he added.

"Orange is attention-grabbing without being aggressive," explained Marksteen Adamson, international creative director of Interbrand.

"It can be calm, warm and rich as well as fresh and healthy."

Robbie Lawson, Wolff Olins creative director said: "Orange is warm and friendly as opposed to the cold, blue tones used by telecoms companies and banks."

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