The Frog and the Prints: The story of ESKA logo

Ever wondered where our famous frog logo comes from?

Pondered the use of this little amphibian as our mighty mascot?

Mused over its origins?

Let us enlighten you, with an enchanting tale of how one little frog would come to represent one giant leap for sustainable board.

(Way back in 1879), in a land, somewhere, below sea level (well, The Netherlands) lived a happy little frog. Day after day he’d hop, skip and jump through the freshwater ponds and lush Dutch meadows of Sappemeer.

Now it’s well known that frogs are fussy little creatures. They will only remain in environments that are clean and green and if it’s not to their high standards, they will search out pastures pure. 

But so rich and fertile were these fields, so crystal clear were these waters that the little frog had found his utopia. 

And so frog families came from far and wide, spawning offspring and spending their days jumping for joy in this charming unspoilt eco-system.

Then one day a visitor arrived: an entrepreneur no less. He slowly strolled across the straw-strewn meadows of Sappemeer. For he too had a utopian dream: a plan to build a cardboard factory. But this would be no ordinary factory. This would be something extraordinary – using only natural ingredients to create the best quality cardboards for the world. 

As he kneeled down to test the quality of the straw that would become his signature product, he heard a tiny ‘ribbit’.  Then another and another and another… 

In that instant, the entrepreneur knew he had chosen the perfect place to set up base. For where there are frogs, there is a natural life cycle – in fact, anyone familiar with frogs knows they’re a good sign. 

And what happened next, was truly unbelievable. 

Hundreds and hundreds of frogs emerged from the thick straw to perform a spellbinding frog dance in that Sappemeer meadow, leaping high across the land, diving deep into the fresh water and showcasing the extraordinary relationship they had with their environment.

What a wonderful natural phenomenon to behold! 

So captivated was the entrepreneur that he vowed to grasp that very essence of nature and place it front and centre of his business ensuring that every aspect of his enterprise would be frog-friendly, from the raw materials to the water to the fabrication processes.

And friendly they did indeed become; the entrepreneur and the frog, working together, for the better. 

As the business quickly grew, clients from all over the globe hurried to place orders.

One day, an English merchant ordered several boxes of fine board.

Having always wanted to travel overseas, our fearless, curious amphibious friend decided to go on a little ESKA-pade.

The frog hopped into a box destined for England, cozied down between two luxurious sheets of natural board, and set off across the choppy channel on a worldwide adventure.

But in the midst of the high seas, danger! A sailor took out his penknife and slit open the box to check the cargo inside. Frightened, the frog leapt out and hid in the boat. A close escape – phew!

Eventually, the frog made it all the way back to Sappemeer but thought he’d be in big trouble with the entrepreneur for having run off.

Not so. For when the box reached England, there, clearly visible on the board… was a little frog imprint. The paper merchant was so enthralled by this, that he began calling the board ‘frog board’:

“10 more pallets of your finest frog board please!”

And so it became a ‘stamp of approval’. Anyone who discovered the famous frog print on their order knew they had the finest quality product. So much so, that those who received board without the frog print, returned it and asked for ‘the special frog board’.

The entrepreneur simply knew he had to make the imprint a huge part of the brand. And so… it became the ESKA logo.

The frog imprint is now an integral part of the ESKA brand, representing our utmost respect for nature and our dedication to sustainable development in every single area of our business.

These wonderful values are inherent in every piece of raw material, every step of our process and in every fibre of our finish – intrinsically linked to our product, our provenance and our principles.

When you see the frog logo, you know you’re good to go.

Today, natural cardboard is the ultimate answer to the climate debate. We’re so proud we got a jump-start in taking care of the environment from our very first brush with that little frog over 140 years ago.

You see, at ESKA, we’ve always been totally committed to a lifetime of sustainability, so we can all live happily ever after.

‘Ribbit’.