TOSHIBA VBL
Translating Japanese heritage into a global brand system.
The VBL is a brand DNA “alphabet” that communicates the company’s values and personality. It is the key ingredient for an authentic, convincing strategy.
A good VBL gives designers a powerful tool to steer the creative process, provides direction for evaluating success at every level, and expresses the brand’s core attributes, creating an emotional connection between brand and consumer.
Redefine Toshiba’s global Visual Brand Language to support international expansion, aligning Japanese quality heritage with contemporary global consumer expectations across products and packaging.
A systemized VBL acting as brand DNA, enabling consistent global execution while allowing regional adaptation across Asia, Europe and the Americas, with cohesive brand storytelling that raises value perception and loyalty.
- Global VBL implementation
- iF Design Award winner
- Unified product and packaging
- Strong retail brand recall
- Brand governance at scale
- Global vs. local trade-offs
- Identity as an execution system
- Cross-region alignment
- Design-led value creation
Awards & recognition
Trade-offs
- Prioritized heritage authenticity over aggressive trend adoption, preserving Japanese brand DNA while translating it for contemporary global relevance.
- Chose global standardization over regional design freedom, accepting reduced local customization for consistency, governance and long-term brand equity.
- Invested in long-term VBL platforms instead of short-term product refreshes, trading immediate visual novelty for durable design governance across categories and markets.