Pantone’s color of the year: Mocha Mousse
photo credit: Gustavo Boaron
For 2025, the Pantone Color of the Year is PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse, described as a warming, rich brown hue that brings harmony and balance, offering a sense of coziness and familiarity. The selection reflects a desire for comfort, a closer connection to the natural world, and the appreciation of simple pleasures.
Capturing a Global Mood of Connection, Comfort, and Harmony
source: Pantone.com
The Pantone Color of the Year is selected through a thoughtful and trend-analysis process conducted by the Pantone Color Institute. This involves a global team of color experts who spend the year observing and analyzing color influences from various sectors. Here's how they do it:
Global trend analysis
Pantone’s experts travel the world and monitor various industries to identify emerging color trends.
Entertainment and film: Observing colors in upcoming productions and the overall visual aesthetics.
Art: Tracking trends in galleries, exhibitions, and new artists’ works.
Fashion: Analyzing runway shows, designer collections, and street style.
Design: Observing trends in graphic, industrial, and interior design.
Technology: Noting how new materials, textures, and effects influence color.
Socio-economic conditions: Considering how social and political changes impact color preferences.
Social media: Identifying prevalent colors and palettes on digital platforms.
Lifestyle and travel: Observing color trends in aspirational destinations and new ways of living.
Sports: Noting colors associated with major upcoming sporting events.
2. Identifying the Zeitgeist
The goal is to select a color that reflects the current global culture, mood, and attitudes. The chosen color should resonate with consumers worldwide and express what people are looking for or feel they need.
3. Deliberation and consensus
The Pantone Color Institute team, comprising members with diverse backgrounds in design, trend forecasting, and color theory, comes together to discuss their findings.
Despite their varied locations and design disciplines, they aim to reach a consensus on a single color that encapsulates the global zeitgeist.
4. Emotional aspect of color
A significant part of the decision-making process involves considering the emotional connotations and psychological impact of color. They select a color that evokes a specific feeling or message that aligns with the current global climate.
5. Naming the color
Once the color is chosen, Pantone carefully selects a name that appropriately reflects the hue and the emotions it is intended to evoke on a global level.
6. Announcement and influence
Pantone typically announces the Color of the Year in early December for the following year.
This announcement significantly influences various industries, including fashion, interior design, product development, and marketing, often setting the trend for the year ahead.
