Jim Schindler redesigned McDonald’s architectural arches into the stylized M logo used by the company.
The original Golden Arches were physical elements of McDonald’s restaurant buildings, with one arch placed on each side. In 1962, Schindler combined their visual forms into an overlapping “M,” creating a symbol that could work on signs, packaging, advertising, and corporate materials.
This change was important because the brand no longer depended on the full restaurant building to communicate its identity. The symbol could travel wherever the company’s products and advertising appeared.
A frequent mix-up is attributing the logo design to Stanley Meston, who designed the early building arches. Meston created the architectural foundation; Schindler created the corporate mark derived from it. The Golden Arches name remained attached to both the physical features and the famous logo.