Kia to Officially Inaugurate its New Logo Soon

It was reported last year that the South Korean automaker Kia is in process of revamping its logo, which has been there since 1994 and apart from a minor tweak in 2004, has remained pretty much unchanged.

Since then the new logo as appeared several times on spy shots of upcoming generation of Kia models as well as speculative renderings & other key places

New Kia logo on various upcoming Kia models & components

Also the president of Kia Motors Corporation Ho Sung Song, have recently confirmed the new brand direction of the South Korean brand, including a new logo and rename to “Kia” from “Kia Motors”. And now it seems that Kia is preparing for the official announcement soon as “Kia Motors” logo has been removed from the automaker’s head quarter.

Not only that the old logo has been removed from the building, Kia’s new identity has also started to appear on coverings of Hyundai-Kia Genuine Parts.

The new KIA logo is a simplified yet stylized word mark replacing the previous one which was enclosed in an elliptical emblem. It will also be accompanied by a new slogan “Movement that Inspires” replacing the current “Power to Surprise” tagline.

Kia’s new strategy is called Plan S, where S stands for “shift.” The South Korean automaker will reportedly embark on a brand re-launch in January to herald a new KIA in a new era of industry upheaval. According to Ho Sung Song:

“We want to be more dynamic, stylish and inventive. We need something to initiate or drive that business paradigm into the new world. These days, we are transitioning to a new industry paradigm.”

The new direction to be unveiled in January, targets a mass ramp-up of EVs through 2025 and a rapid expansion into what the company calls purpose-built vehicles, or PBVs. These are runabouts dedicated to new mobility enterprises such as ride-hailing, robo-taxis and on-the-go e-commerce.

Related: Fresh Renderings of Next Generation Kia Sportage

Song said the rush of EVs will help Kia reach a different, more up-market target customer. Under Plan S, Kia will build an EV lineup of 11 models by 2025, and it will have seven EV-only products by 2027. Kia plans to sell 500,000 battery-electric vehicles by 2026, and move another 500,000 hybrids, plug-in hybrids and other eco-friendly offerings in that time frame. Kia’s first dedicated EV will be delivered next year.