IKEA abandons Futura for Verdana

lonelysandwich:

From Typophile:

IKEA abandons ~50 years of Futura and Century Schoolbook for Verdana. In an interview with Swedish design magazine CAP&DESIGN [translation here] the reason for the change is to be able to use the same font in all countries, including Asian countries. Also they want to be able to give the same visual impression both in print and the web.

I’ve never been a fan of Verdana, a typeface commissioned by Microsoft in 1996 for on-screen readability. Sure, Gruber uses it tastefully, but at anything larger than 11pt, it feels to me a bit squat and dopey. Friendly and readable, but a little bit simple, in the way you’d say a person is simple, but only behind his back. A good listener, but not much of a talker. I guess what I’m trying to say is I want a typeface to take control of a situation. Smack me around a little and tell me what’s wrong with my body, then sell me a TV stand and make me assemble it myself without any tools or clothes, all the while throwing meatballs and lingonberry at my problem areas.

via Hankins