The company’s history began in Perugia in 1907 with the “Perugian company for the manufacture of confetti” founded by Francesco Andreani, Leone Ascoli, Annibale Spagnoli and Francesco Buitoni; the latter was a member of the homonymous family of pasta makers from San Sepolcro, in the province of Arezzo (see Buitoni). The logo of the time depicted the griffin going to the left, symbol of the city of Perugia, and a shield with the acronym “SPFC”.

Chocolate entered the scene after the first postwar period; in 1920 the company took on the new name of “La Perugina, Chocolate and Jams” and, in 1922, of “Perugina”. The logo became essential with only the griffin, here going to the right, and the name in the medieval-inspired font with the typical hook of the letter “R” and the curl of the letter “A”. At the end of the 1920s, Perugina saw its role as a leading industry in the confectionery sector strengthen.

Historically it was above all the famous Perugina product, the Bacio, that familiarized Italians with chocolate in 1922, making its use democratic. Legend has it that its first name was nothing less than “punch”, due to its squat shape even if it was quickly renamed in a different way and lent itself to easy puns and nice allusions. Federico Seneca, one of the most successful poster designers and designers of the 1920s, designed the Kisses box inspired by the painting “The lovers” by Francesco Hayez and invented the cartouche, that is the card with the love phrase, still present today in the Baci. The box has undergone several restyling operations over the years.

The logo was stylized in 1931 making it more modern with the “U” instead of the “V” in the fascist style and, in 1933, a version with some sans serif characters. In 1939 there was a restyling that aimed to essentialize and compact the logo with the disappearance of the curl of the letter “A” and with the recovery of the griffin in a non-rampant position and going to the left.

In 1985 the logo was inserted in a flattened gold-colored octagon where there was also the date of foundation; in 1989 the griffin and the gold-colored logo were inserted in a blue semicircle also surrounded by gold. These different layouts argued in favor of the vitality of a logo which, despite its many years, demonstrated how tradition and innovation could coexist and allow a growing presence in complex and globalized markets.

In 2002 Landor Associates made a change to the lettering making it more modern and essential while the Break agency changed the griffin that appears in silhouette on a portion of the arch.

In 2007, the company marked the centenary of its foundation with the logo, all in gold, and the words of the foundation “since 1907” on the sides of the griffin.

Coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the “Bacio Perugina”, in 2022 the logo restyling involved the stylization of the griffin and the pay off linked to the date of the company’s foundation.