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Douglas began rolling out a new logo in August 2018. Chief executive Tina Müller, a former Opel marketing chief who took over in September 2017, told WirtschaftsWoche that the digital switch would be quick and that stores across Europe would follow gradually. The logo, she said, should emphasise the brand's premium character and radiate modernity. WirtschaftsWoche summed it up in one word: unadorned.

Müller was clear about the motive. A heritage brand like Douglas must not age with its customers, she said, but win young buyers, helped by new services such as quick make-up appointments booked through an app.

EPC News laid out the scale. The relaunch covered Germany and 16 further European countries, more than 2,000 stores and the digital channels, with a new logo, a new mission statement and a new visual language. It was one of five pillars of Müller's #FORWARDBEAUTY strategy, aimed at upgrading and rejuvenating the brand, and stores were to be refurbished by the end of 2019. Douglas invested a double-digit million euro sum, and Europe's largest Douglas store in Frankfurt was to be refitted by the end of September.

WWD covered the Italian rollout, where Douglas had just absorbed Limoni and La Gardenia, the country's two biggest selective beauty chains, taking it from 100 doors to 600 and 2,500 staff. Douglas Italia chief executive Fabio Pampani described the new logo as leaner and more modern, switching from light blue italic lettering to a minimal, uppercase font in black, and said the store signs would change over the summer as Limoni and La Gardenia became Douglas. The company also planned to spend 6 million euros on Beauty Lounge service corners in 24 Italian stores. In that context the plain wordmark makes more sense: it has to absorb hundreds of acquired shops quickly.

Design Tagebuch noted that the last significant change had come at the end of 2013, when Vintage Mint was introduced as a house colour. The new campaign images were shot by Peter Lindbergh, which WWD also highlighted alongside the new logo.

Plain lettering and Lindbergh photography are a coherent package: the logo steps back so that the imagery can look expensive. That is the standard luxury playbook, and Douglas executes it competently. The risk is the same as for every brand that sands off its quirks. Unadorned can easily mean anonymous, and a beauty retailer chasing younger shoppers needs more than good manners.