When most people think of color standardization systems, they probably don't think of global brand dominance, cultural influence, or sophisticated marketing strategies. Yet Pantone has achieved something remarkable: it has transformed a technical color-matching system into one of the most recognizable and influential brands in the design world—and increasingly, far beyond it. Founded in 1963 by Lawrence Herbert, Pantone began as a solution to a practical problem: ensuring color consistency across different materials and manufacturing processes.