Originally a mass-market car maker with relatively straightforward designs,Citroen shocked the world in 1934 with the innovative Traction Avant, the world's first mass-production front wheel drive car. Significant models included the H Van, the 2CV, the DS and the CX.
At the beginning of 2009, Citroen announced that is was setting up a luxury brand called DS that would run parallel alongside its current car range. This brand (or marque) would use the name of the 1955 car to represent its future cars starting with the DS 3, a high quality small car based on the floor plan of the new C3. This car debuted in early 2010 quickly followed by the larger DS 4 and the large DS 5 respectively. They are all be badged with the new DS logo rather than the familiar Citroen double chevron and all have markedly different styling from their equivalent sister car.
In 2008/9 Citroen appointed Landor Associates to reinvent the corporate brand for the Citroen dealer network. A new logo, a metallic variation on the previous logo, and a new strapline "Creative Technologie" was created. This is currently being rolled out around the world and is expected to take three to five years.
Citroen celebrated its 90th Anniversary in 2009. As well as a new brand identity, launched in February 2009, a number of other events took place throughout the year, including the launch of a special-edition C3 Picasso 90th Anniversary Edition in the UK.