Convention hotel room door card keys gave attendees a sneak preview of Zondervan's new look, formally unveiled yesterday at the launch of the company's 75th anniversary celebrations.

Distributed to ICRS registrants on arrival at their Denver hotels over the weekend, the official convention hotel door cards featured the publisher's new logo, a large gold letter “Z” in the form of three stacked books.

The company's name is spelled out in full in dark red underneath the graphic, against a dark gray background chosen to show the company “stands out in a world that is less and less black or white,” a statement said. The new look is being rolled out on all new marketing and promotional materials now and will begin to appear on new products from the fall.

The logo was “relevant, modern” and projected “a forward-looking image,” said President and CEO Doug Lockhart in an interview at the company's hospitality suite, which featured dishes of gold, red and gray M&Ms for visitors.

Anniversary celebrations will include events for current and retired staff at the company's Grand Rapids, Mich., headquarters and a printing of an updated version of Zondervan's 50-year history, The House of Zondervan.

Lockhart said that he considered the translation and publication of the New International Version of the Bible one of Zondervan's major contributions during its history. Brothers P.J. (Pat) and Bernie Zondervan who had founded the company “took a significant risk” to ensure completion of the translation, which had become the best-selling Bible in the world.

The new look was “an evolution in our branding strategy,” he said. The anniversary offered “our best opportunity to accomplish an awful lot in a short amount of time.”