If you don’t live in France you might have missed it, but since November 2008 McDonald’s have changed their color from red to green there.

Not much official communication about this rebranding since the “Come as you are” EuroRSCG campaign which first used it, but it looks like a simple question of surfing the environment-friendly wave and/or inspiring a higher class of product. This is how Jean-Pierre Petit, CEO of McDonald’s France explains the change:

Our logo (the Golden Arches) stay the same, but the change of background (from red to green) follows the evolution of our restaurants settings redesign strategy, and their integration in their local surroundings. The brand is less visible, but better integrated in the landscape. (source in French)

McDonald’s must have been suffering quite a lot from their image in France to make such a change. Even when they tested McDonald’s Dining in Japan back in 2003, offering a nicer menu and nicer settings, they darkened the red as their main color and changed the yellow to white.

Their choice of such a dark green makes me think they wanted to piggyback on the powerful Starbucks brand. Instead, it look like the old logo of British Petroleum.

Personally, I would have advised a brighter, more saturated, and friendlier summer leaf color. Something like: