USPS and the Pantone Color Institute have worked together to showcase seven colors to celebrate the Postal Service’s 250th anniversary.
The shades chosen are:
• Parchment White, which recalls the 18th-century paper used for correspondence and honors the establishment of a postal system on July 26, 1775.
• Pony Express, a shade of brown that honors the Pony Express, created in 1860.
• Airmail Red, which pays tribute to the Curtiss JN-4, the biplane used to carry the first airmail letters in May 1918, and the “Inverted Jenny” stamp.
• Mr. ZIP Orange, which invokes the postal cartoon mascot introduced in 1963 to help teach customers about the five-digit ZIP Code.
• Carrier Red, which remembers a postal uniform patch and emblem introduced in 1965.
• Gold Seal, which honors the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970, and the then-new logo of the newly created USPS.
• USPS Blue, which draws from the “sonic eagle” logo introduced in 1993.
The new colors will not be available for stamps, paint or apparel, and they won’t replace the red and blue tones that USPS uses for its corporate colors.
Instead, the new colors were created for marketing purposes only to help commemorate the Postal Service’s 250th anniversary and will not be used for any other purpose.
“We were looking for a unique way to tell our 250-year history and hit another touchpoint in our storytelling. It was a natural fit to work closely with the Pantone Color Institute to mark moments that shaped USPS through color. This way of storytelling is an unexpected and authentic way to get our brand story out to a wider audience,” said Amity Kirby, the Postal Service’s licensing and creative manager.
The Pantone Color Institute is a consulting service that forecasts global color trends and advises companies on color in brand identity and product development.
The Pantone website has more information about the collaboration with USPS and each new color.
