What is the official color of 2024? Peach, please!

The Pantalone Institute – those guys sure know their colors

The Pantone Color Institute is a division of the Pantone consulting company. It is staffed by experts from many fields, who all have one thing in common – their love and knowledge of color and design. This gives them an intuitive ability to see the world through the lens of color. Thus, they try to connect everything that is happening in the world and translate it into the language of color.

Pantone has a meaningful historical connection to color.

Back in the day, when you wanted to have something printed, getting the right shade was quite tricky. There was no official color shade naming convention, so if you wanted something printed in blue, for example, the results you would get could be something, …well, out of the blue, let’s just say.

That was the case till 1963, when Lawrence Herbert, founder of Pantone company, came up with the Pantone Marching System (PMS). Suddenly, every color shade could be identified and matched, and thus the printers finally were able to understand and get the specific color their client desired.

Still, despite the impact Pantone had on how we perceive color, nowadays the company is most probably best known to the broader audience for its trendsetting “Pantone Color of the Year” initiative.

“Pantone Color of the Year”

Since 1999, Pantone’s team of global color experts has been scouring the world for new color influences. They look to every industry for inspiration, so socio-economic conditions also play a significant role. The choice of the color of the year can be influenced by new technologies, materials, textures, or any attractive color-influencing effects that attract worldwide attention.

The color of 2024 according to The Pantone Color Institute was a shade of peach – 13-1023, aka “peach fuzz”.

The buzz around Peach Fuzz

The color of 2024, Peach Fuzz, is meant to be emblematic of the year ahead of us. With its warm undertones, it has a timeless feeling to it: it seems like it belongs to the interior of a 50’s ice cream parlor, and yet, it would be out of place in a modern apartment.

When it comes to the hidden meaning of color, this shade of peach signifies understanding between people. Now more than ever, customers expect brands to be both understanding and caring.

The 2024 color of the year therefore provides excellent inspiration for individuals and companies alike to ensure that their communications reflect values that are important to society. Peach Fuzz also poses a challenge in tailoring these communications to be responsive to the needs of the responders.

It conveys both authenticity and intimacy – two factors key relationships, whether they are personal or professional.

Why do we need a color of the year?

You might be wondering: “Well, that is all nice and all, but what is even the point of selecting a color of the year?”

The choice of color of the year serves as an expression of our overall attitude as a society. It is a color that is meant to reflect what people are currently looking for.

The Pantone Color Institute wants to emphasize the role of color as a silent language. Color is an incredibly powerful communication tool at our disposal. It is the first thing we perceive, even subconsciously, and the first thing we connect with. All in all, color is a visual language that we all understand, with messages that connect genders, generations, and geographic locations.

Here are some interesting examples of practical applications of color:

• Organizations across industries can harness the power of color to create a more effective design strategy.
• This one has the potential for greater responder engagement, whether you wish to influence your social media audience, your business partners, or potential clients.
• Last but not least, Pantone Color Institute team members suggest that color plays a major role in a consumer's purchasing decision.

Sources:

Brzoskwiniowa komunikacja w branży finansowej, czyli kolor 2024 roku

Pantone, Color of the Year, 2024