Papa John’s could unveil a new – but not too new – name and logo in the coming months.
The pizza chain may soon get rid of its apostrophe, and go by Papa Johns, in an effort to repair its tarnished image after its founder reportedly made a racist remark earlier this year during a conference call. John Schattner, founder and the company’s face, resigned as chairman in July 2018.
Papa John’s International filed paperwork about the new spelling and brand imagery with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in late August. Removing the possessive apostrophe in Papa John’s would, in theory, provide a more distance between the company and its founder, so it doesn’t look like he owns the business.
Schattner remains Papa John’s largest shareholder.
A Papa John’s spokesman said there are no imminent plans to use the new logo without the punctuation, AdAge reported. The same article cited trademark attorney Josh Gerben as saying that the new look could appear as late as early 2019, as the trademark office can take up to four months to examine an application.
The revised logo was filed in many iterations, including a red and green version, a black and white version, and a version with the chain’s catchphrase, “Better Ingredients. Better Pizza.”
