Tag: design

Lean Bean – brand identity

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Lean Bean approached us to create a unique brand identity as the business was faced with significant growth across Dublin and Ireland. Lean Bean is a well-established Fresh Food Outlet in the centre of Dublin, serving up some of the tastiest breakfast and lunch time meals on the island. Reputation soon spread of the fast, fresh offering across the city and demand for the product dictated an increase in stores. With this in the pipe-line the owner of Lean Bean realised opportunity to re-define and re-state the brand purpose, look and feel and communications. With the naming already in the mix it was our job to deliver an identity to reflect the reputation and truthfully communicate this forward-thinking delicious offering.

In their own words:

Founded in 2017, Lean Bean is a destination for healthy food served fast. To us healthy means real food made from scratch. Lean Bean was built on the idea that today people are time poor and the food on offer is of low nutritional value. We want to change that by providing real food, real fast at an affordable price. We believe education around food is very important to our success and that people are actively making more health-conscious decisions.

First off was the logo. We created a unique word mark based on a Stencil font which provides a sense of tradition, sophistication and modernity. The way the letters fall in the stacked version of the logo allowed the typography to play over the line ever so slightly to create an interesting, stand out identity. Paired with the traditional stencil style mark we introduced a modern san-serif to bring harmony in the brand across headlines, menus and body copy that was to be used. Clarity between the two typefaces is important as you will see throughout the menu and website, a natural yin and yang balance really elevates the brand and gives it strength to roll out across any medium required. 

Following the craft of the word mark we created a colour scheme to suit the offering and attract the right audience. Numerous concepts were put forward but the pairing of the fresh ‘lemon’ and the strong ‘teal’ working together provided something completely new for the industry landscape. Teal’s of course reflective of the green ingredients with the hint of Lemon to freshen things up across the brand. The completed palette is extremely ‘fresh’ and packs a real punch when placed in front of the fantastic plates, ingredients, drinks and interiors at Lean Bean.

One of Lean Beans mantra’s is sustainability, as seen here:

Sustainability

We are always trying to reduce our carbon footprint. Over 90% of all our packaging is now compostable with some of the remaining being used from either plant based or recycled plant-based material which is 90% less carbon.

This Lean Bean ethos of sustainability sparked an idea for a new style to accompany the word mark and colour palette. With this in mind we created a unique set of bespoke illustrations which are intertwined across brand textures, backgrounds, interiors and the website. The illustrations are hand-sketched and really bring an air of sustainability to the whole brand personality. This in toe we wanted to introduce a strapline to sum this up. Eat Smart was born. Eat smart encompasses once again the brand ethos of Scratch Cooking, Transparency, Healthy Living and great food. We felt it was a much easier was of letting the customer know that ‘we do healthy food’ and encouraging them to join the food revolution. 

Lean Bean very much is a revolution in fast food and we continue to work with them in the brand roll out and evolution of the business.

The importance of design in leaflets and flyers

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Leaflets and flyers are used by many businesses across the world, whether they are advertising a new product or talking about the services that they offer. However, when it comes to a flyer it is important to make sure that it looks good. This is due to the limited amount of space that you sometimes have to get across the message that you want, but also because more often than not people are being handed them as they are making their way to a certain destination, so have other things on their mind. This means that you need to capture their attention as soon as they are handed it and this is where the design comes in. Within this article, we are going to look at the importance of design when creating flyers and some tips for getting the best design on them.

Eye-Catching Design

Let’s start with the most obvious; the design. Whatever it is you are trying to sell or inform people of, the design on your flyer HAS to be eye-catching. Without an eye-catching design, people are either going to walk straight past your flyer, or take one and throw it out immediately as they think they won’t be interested in it. Obviously, this is exactly what you want to avoid. When designing your flyers, make sure that whatever you are putting on the front can be seen immediately and as such is the right size, instead of either being too small or too big and people can’t figure out what it is. In this instance, it’s probably alright to assume that you are going to include some form of text on your flyers. Make sure that you don’t cover your design in loads of text. Whatever you have to say, keep it short and snappy, as if the first thing that someone sees on a flyer they have been handed is loads and loads of text, they are sure not to want to read it, no matter if they are in a rush or not.

Use Colour to your advantage

Nobody wants to see a drab flyer. Instead of helping to bring out the design of the flyer, it will only dampen it and as a result, those who see it won’t want to read it at all. So make sure that the colour you use, compliments the design that you have chosen, but also makes people look at the flyer. By all means still use dark colours in your flyers, as they can really help to get across the message that you want, depending on what you are talking about. If you are using a theme in your flyer, do some research beforehand and pick colours from that era or topic. For example, if you are designing a flyer advertising an 90s disco party, research what colours would have been popular during this time, such as bright colours, possibly some neon and big lettering to accompany this. Doing some research beforehand will really help bring your flyer to life.

Organise

Before you start putting your flyer together, it is important that you have all of the information gathered that you want to be there. There is nothing worse than having something designed and then printed only to realise that some key piece of information is missing. So it is good to be organised while the research is being done, but just as important to keep everything organised on the flyer itself. Use an information hierarchy, where the most important pieces of information or text will be the easiest to see, as this is what you will want them to lock their eyes onto almost immediately. As well as this, while it may seem like a good idea to try and be abstract when designing a flyer, sometimes keeping it simple is the best course of action, because if the information is all scattered about it can make it hard to understand and read, leading to people not wanting to.

Hopefully, this gave you a little bit more insight into just why Graphic Design is so important when creating a flyer or leaflet and that one done up in Word, really isn’t going to cut it. However, we do understand that not everyone is a graphic designer. So if you are in need of some design for your next project give us a call on 028 9507 2007 or email us at studio@kaizenbrandevolution.com, we’d love to chat.

Why is typography important

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Here in the Kaizen Brand Evolution studio, we use typography every single day in our work. In every brand that we generate, on every website that we design and in every logo that we create, it’s always there and always important to us.

Typography is described as being “the study of the design of typefaces and the way in which type is laid out on a page to best achieve the desired visual effect and to best convey the meaning of the reading matter”. It may seem like something very simple, and like it may not make much of a difference when it comes to design, however, this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, Typography can often be the element that either makes or breaks the main design, whether it is a logo or just a piece of packaging.

But why is it that important you might be asking? Surely the way in which an image looks is going to be more important than what is written there? Well within this article we are going to look at just why Typography is so important, and hopefully, after reading this you will understand it a little better.

Catches The Attention Of The Reader

The type that you put on your marketing material is your message. This is going to be the part that tells the customers exactly what it is that you are offering. As such it is important that it catches the eye of the reader. It needs to draw them in so that they begin looking at your marketing material, and then they can begin noticing everything else, such as the design. It is important in this sense then to have what is called a ‘type hierarchy’ on your marketing material. This means that when there is more than one piece of type, one takes dominance over the others, becoming the main body. This is the piece that will catch the eye of the reader and draw them in. Once they are in, they will begin to notice the smaller bits of type, where the rest of the details about your message are being conveyed.

Conveys The Feeling and Mood Of Your Message

Typography is just as great for helping to set the feeling and tone of your message as your design is, and it all depends on which font you choose and also the typeface that you choose. There are thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of fonts and typefaces out there for you to choose from. However, it is important that you make sure and choose one which suits the message your brand is trying to convey. It is often evident a mile off when the type on a brands marketing material doesn’t fit, and even if it is only small, it puts the whole thing off.

Shows Professionalism

Good typography not only helps your immediate design and marketing material look good, but it is also helping to look your and your business look good, by showing the professionalism you carry. It shows that you take care when designing your marketing material and that you want people to notice what you are trying to say.

Build up recognition

Consistency is key to recognition, and recognition is exactly what you want from your branding and marketing. If you start using one type of font and make it distinct to you, customers will begin to immediately associate this with you and your brand. All the biggest brands in the world are consistent throughout all of their marketing when it comes to type because their typography and font have become a staple of their overall brand.

Hopefully, by reading this article you can start to see just how and why Typography is important to your brand, often becoming just as big a part of the brand as the logo.

Glo – Brand Creation

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Recently we branded Glo Beauty, a new Beauty Salon in Belfast. This undertaking included: full brand development, logo design website design and social media campaigns.

The client’s ambition was to create a modern beauty salon offering a customer service in Belfast. Bringing a similar feel to other Cities across the globe like Dublin, London, New York and Milan. Glo is based in Kings Square, off Kings Road, Belfast. Offering a variety of services from Manicure & Pedicures, Tanning, Wax & Hair Removal, Eye Enhancements, to Make Up. Building upon the foundation, Glo will deliver a quirky experience, which makes you feel really good about yourself.

Glo Beauty is one of the first Beauty Salons in Belfast, to be funky, modern and appointment only to give you a premium service and only using the Top Market brands. Ireland’s Leading Make up artist Aimee Connolly (Sculpted) has trained Glo’s very own Maria Chesser. Maria is a prodigy in the industry, bringing elements she has learned from across the country into Belfast. As well as running the business Maria wants to get heavily involved with the services, as that’s what she’s being training for. She will be available for appointments as well.

Glo approached Kaizen Brand Evolution to brand their Salon opening in their Flagship Store in Belfast. They asked us to design and develop a new branding system for their salon; it needed to feel welcoming, bright, and luxurious. It should look modern so it could really stand out in Belfast. We wanted to Glo to brighten up the beauty industry in Northern Ireland.

Our research revealed some amazing hair salons and beauty brands across the globe. We explored texture, palette, photography – fashion, landscape and otherwise. We tested and worked with a range of type, and mark making to create something unique. We used “Your skin is Glowing” as the initial concept behind the brand identity. We combined an array of light and eyelashes for beauty with the word GLO. This creates a beautiful mark, which becomes the GLO Ray device that can be used to highlight the subject and used throughout the branding collateral. The colours used in Glo Beauty are natural colours, which will work in contrasting colours across the brand.

We incorporated ‘Glo’ into the language. This helped with the photography direction used within the brand. We created Glo’s brand language and tone of voice to offer her services. Statements like “You Glo Girl and “Glo on your Day” were created during the creative writing process for the brand. Glo Beauty Is the place where you’ll feel better every time, your skin will Glo and to really make the brand shine we had to show the brand could be used to motivate women and feel positive about the way they look. Using this brand language will help Glo in the future for marketing campaigns and advertising and will across the services Glo offers.  We married together the brand language and the logo mark to successfully to show Glo’s brand.

Following the identity and language creation, we implemented the branding across a number of deliverables. We visualised how the brand can be used across everything Glo will need from coffee cups to uniforms to help with the overall experience at Glo. These visuals will help show the direction on how the brand can be used for the signage to branded collateral for when Maria goes to beauty events. Having a strong visual brand with a clear message will help her stand out amongst the big competitors within the industry.

It was great to work on the branding for Glo and we look to seeing the brand will be rolled out across their social media, uniforms and in the salon itself as Glo continues to evolve.

Watch out for these pitfalls when designing brochures

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When it comes to Brochures, they can often be one of the best pieces of marketing material that you can own. For something being quite small, it can be so important, as they can carry a lot of important information, that perhaps you couldn’t quite get across in a meeting, for example, due to a lack of time or a need for further information, brochures expand on what you have already said in greater detail, or give you the choice to let it do the talking for you.

However, it isn’t just a matter of including all of this information and expecting it work from there, as well as getting across vital information your brochures also need to look good. If they don’t no one is going to want to pick one up and read it, as more than likely they won’t even notice it. Here’s what exactly to avoid when it comes to designing your brochures, and how you can get the most out of them.

Visually Pleasing

Brochures need to be visually pleasuring, there isn’t any denying that. It’s the first thing that is going to attract someone into lifting up your brochure, whether you happen to have left them behind after a meeting, or else you’ve sent some along to a trade show, as mentioned before if it doesn’t look good, no one is going to be enticed to pick it up. In that sense, it’s a good idea to make your brochure look exciting. While it may be a temptation to produce them quickly, and you might think it will look professional, this will not be the case. It will end up just being walked by and not noticed, as there is nothing there to make it stand out from the rest of the brochures that happen to be sitting on a table, for example in a waiting room, or at a show. There is a fine line between being too boring and also being too over the top when it comes to designing of brochures, and it is the middle ground that you want to be on. “don’t judge a book by its cover” is a phrase thrown about but the reality is people usually do.

Easy to Read

With all of the information that you are going to be putting in your brochures, it wouldn’t do them or you any good if your target audience can’t read them. There are a few factors that you have to be on the lookout for here, to make sure that they are legible and do what they are supposed to do. Firstly, make sure that you choose a font you can read, for example staying away from scripted fonts unless absolutely necessary or used large enough to be easily read. As well as this, make sure that the font you have chosen isn’t too small on the finished article. A good way to ensure that this doesn’t happen is to print a few tests runs with different fonts and sizes, so that you can see exactly what they look like, instead of printing a large batch, only for them all to be unreadable. Another thing to keep in mind is the colours which you choose, both for the overall design and also the font itself. Using a font colour that contrasts with your background colour is the best way to go, for example using a darker font colour with a lighter background and vice versa.

Good Quality

The job of a brochure is for it to be lifted, held and read in someone’s hands. This means that it is going to be moved around a good bit. Therefore, they need to be good quality. Don’t think that by going for a cheaper paper stock you will get the same brochure but you are saving money. It won’t turn out like this, as the cheaper quality will eventually show through. The more the brochure is read and handled, the more it will start to fall apart and therefore be discarded, meaning you don’t get anywhere near the same marketing coverage that you were hoping for. They need to be durable and feel good in the hand, meaning even if the better quality paper stock is slightly more expensive, it’s a good idea to choose it, as you will reap the benefits in the long run.

Hopefully, by reading this article today, you have a better idea of what to watch out for when you are designing your brochures or getting them designed for you.

In that regard, if you are need of some help designing your brochures, we can help you here at Kaizen Brand Evolution. Our team of professional designers have been designing them for years, so know exactly what they are talking about. Give us a call on 028 9507 2007 or get us by email via our contact form.

The Number 3 – Brand Identity

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The Number Three is a traditional Bar & Restaurant based in Limerick with a contemporary audience. Previously trading as Tom & Jerry’s it has since changed owners, the new proprietors wanted a brand to reflect the new services that they would have to offer of food and drink as well as live music. The name Number Three comes from the location on Glenworth Street.  The logo’s mark is tasked to show that the business serves food as well as alcohol through iconography, we have interpreted the request across the logo with the symbolisation of beer, drinks and food brought into the logo. The most important message was food/drink and bringing that together for the new bar and therefore we came up with the tagline ‘Pub & Grub’ this shows the traditional Irish side with the slang term ‘grub’ meaning food, as well as the pub element. As the new owners are starting out fresh they wanted the logo to look contemporary but with the old Irish feel to fit in with the local community of Limerick and the industry landscape. Kaizen Brand Evolution had to create a logo that was adaptable for the future that didn’t fit in with trends so that it could be timeless and stand alone for the business and stay classic for the duration of the bar’s lifespan.

The No 3. logo design uses a timeless cursive styled font with vector illustrations of wheat, barley the types used in beer making, there is also wine bottles to symbolise the pub and drinking aspect. We have also used the iconography of a knife and fork to show the grub side, the style is a contemporary vector design around the framing to show food and drink together. The logo is a established with the colour scheme gold and dark green to give an old traditional feel of Irish food and drink in Limerick. The logo shape is in a circle with the iconography crafted around it, the circle breaks for the wheat and barley at each end to come to show. It gives that traditional friendly vibe with a modern take on it with the vector illustrations. The photography and art direction style is comfort and homely atmosphere with a sepia filter, showing good live music with also traditional connotations.

The No. 3 logo comes in two versions, the circular version with iconography and main 3 typography as well as the longer version with ‘The Number Three’ in landscape for signage for the front of the bar. For the rollout of The No. 3 logo, it will be used on glass etching for the glass windows which will work well for the etching typography for the number three, signage for the front of the bar and interiors, mirrors, doors, food and drink menus, social media. The interior designer will be working alongside the brand for the No.3 to give that homely traditional but feel inside with booths, picture frames, high stools, a long bar and wooden interiors everything you would expect to see in your typical traditional Irish bar. We look forward to working with The No.3 across all of the deliverables and seeing the brand live in Limerick, we wish the owners the best of luck in their new venture.

Why hire a design agency?

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Kaizen Brand Evolution was born nearly 4 years ago as its own stand-alone studio under the Kaizen moniker. It is the job of Kaizen Brand Evolution to help our clients even further. If a client wants a completely new brand, we are there to help. If a client wants a new logo, we are there. Even if all a client wants is the design for their new marketing campaign, Kaizen Brand Evolution is there to help.

Since the studio came to life, we have worked with many important brands in many different industries, such as Punchestown, Down Royal, Boojum, to name but a few. But aside from the big players, we are also there when the smaller, more independent clients need us, but they are by no means any less important. If there is a smaller local business who sees that they need that extra something to bring their brand to the top level, they know they can come to us to help them bring their ambition back to life. We want to see businesses succeed because when they do it means that we have done our jobs correctly, and there is nothing we love more than seeing happy clients, both old and new.

In that regard though, why should you think about hiring a design agency? What can they do for you that perhaps you couldn’t do yourself? The answer more often than not is quite a lot, and today we are going to look at a few of those reasons, to help make your decision a little bit easier.

Portfolio:

Firstly, let’s assume that you are in two minds about hiring a design agency and maybe have a few in mind. You’ve got them side by side, with advantages for both. But I would ask you to stop with the general outlook and focus in on one thing about them all; their Portfolio. The size of an agencies portfolio doesn’t necessarily mean that they are the best out there, as it may be a case that they are taking all of the jobs that they can find, even if they aren’t the best to work on and don’t benefit them. The agency that you want to hire, will be the one with the big names attached to their portfolio. They will be the ones that haven’t done the reaching out but have been approached to take on these jobs. And if their portfolio is big, that’s even better as it means they have been approached by many of the top, top companies. Looking at the portfolios will give you a sense of what exactly it is you are getting and should make your decision easier on who to go with.

A Team of Creatives:

Freelance or agency? Part of the allure of going with a freelancer comes from them usually being cheaper. However, think of the reason that they are cheaper; there is only one person working on your project. This isn’t going to be great if you are in need of a full rebrand, as a lot of work goes into this and as such, they may not be able to cope with the workload. However, if you decide to hire a full agency, you are guaranteed to get a team of at least 3 if not 4 designers working on your project at the beginning. This is exactly what happens here at Kaizen Brand Evolution. When we receive a new job from a client a brief is passed to 3 or 4 designers to each give their own take on it. From there, each of these designers creates presentations that are presented to you the client, meaning you could have 3 or 4 different looking brands to choose from, instead of one brand from one person, which you may not like, setting the project back a few weeks. What is also advantageous about this, is that you may have the option to combine different aspects of each designers concept, meaning you not only get the brand you wanted but the brand you need.

Help from Beginning to End:

When you are starting out with your next project, you may only be thinking about a few things, a few immediate things to get you started, for example, logo design, website design and marketing material. However, as the project progresses and comes to its final stages, there may be more than you now realise you would like done as well, such as packaging design, poster design or even design for your first campaign. With an agency such as Kaizen Brand Evolution, we are more than happy to help you out there too. Bringing together everything that we have done over the course of the project and continuing on the work. We’re not happy until you are happy, and as such won’t leave you when you need our help.

If you are ever in need of design and branding work for whatever the reason consider looking at design agencies, despite them being slightly more expensive than for example a freelance designer, you know that it will be worth it in the long run.

If you are in need of a design agency to help you with your next project, whether that is branding, web design, rebranding or a brand audit please do not hesitate to give us a call on 028 9507 2007 or by email via our contact form, and we can set up a meeting to discuss what Kaizen Brand Evolution can do for your brand.

Sports Medicine NI – Branding

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Sports Medicine NI approached Kaizen Brand Evolution wishing to create a new brand to go with their new premises in Windsor Park. In their own words “Sports Medicine NI offers a comprehensive management service for athlete injury and health. Using our in-house sports science and medicine experts, we are able to provide a holistic team approach to guide the athlete on their journey to health and performance. Whether you are an international athlete, a coach, sports club/association or simply someone who enjoys being active, we are able to provide tailored support to recover from injury, regain health and remain healthy to achieve your sporting goals. Our specialists have experience in working with athletes and teams at the highest level and can bring that expertise to address your specific problem in one venue, simplifying the process, increasing the communication and reducing the cost.”

Sports Medicine NI target market is anyone who has been injured through physical activity or someone who takes part in physical activity or competitive sport. Their ideal customer would be a regular gym player or an amateur sports player, coach or schools player. Sports Medicine NI provides expert advice on all athlete injury, illness and performance. The aim of Sports Medicine NI is to get the player back into the game and for them to stay in the game. They specialise in physiotherapy, exercise physiology, sports psychology, sports nutrition, strength and conditioning and sports medicine, with touch points also in radiology, surgery and other specialities.

From this excellent brief from the client we were able to use this terminology for the language and strapline, this came as the key brand pillars of “Injury, Health, Performance”. For the key narrative, “Getting you back in the game” ‘helping you stay in the game’ and ‘succeed in the game’ was thought of as it covers all of the key touch points for the clients ideal market. The positive messaging shows what Sports Medicine NI can do for you throughout your sporting career. This is paired up with an inline font to highlight the words, back and stay and also in keeping with the logo design.

The Sports Medicine NI logo is made up of lines symbolising the many lines on a track or pitch, and an arrow is crafted in the M to show positivity and moving forward. The logo used a friendly soft san serif font – Effra – which is approachable and corporate at the same time. A key element in the rebrand was to have a smaller version of the logo using the SM only which can be used with and without Sports Medicine NI to the right-hand side. The colour scheme used is a cobalt blue, bright yellow and turquoise as the brand colours. The colours are bright, they stand out and are also current, as well as being representative of a sports brand such as Nike and Adidas. Additional colours of navy, pink and red are used to highlight six key sections within the brand. Throughout the brand rollout, the arrow is used in the M in the SM NI logo to denote the forward thinking and moving forward, which is very important in a athletes life, especially if they have suffered from injury.

The photography used within the brand is bright and full of colour, showcasing athletes taking part in their chosen sports, as Sports Medicine NI has clients from all manner of different sports. We have used a diverse range from swimming to karate, as well as the most popular sports such as football, boxing and rugby.

The brand rollout has been visualised on a number of different deliverables including billboards, website and social media, business stationery, flyers, signage and uniform. We enjoyed greatly working on this project and we look forward to continuing working with Sports Medicine NI as their brand rolls out.

McQuillan Companies – Brand Identity

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McQuillan companies approached the branding team at Kaizen Brand Evolution to re-position and revitalise their brand identity. The family-owned business is well established across Northern Ireland and is specialists in civil engineering, quarrying, waste management and outdoor cleaning services to name a few. McQuillan Companies have a large presence on the road, their vehicles being instantly recognisable, a lot of which is down to their unique colour palette, something that the branding team had to keep in mind throughout the brand audit. Auditing a brand is our way of truthfully expressing the business offering today, whilst retaining loyal clients brand understanding and improving brand touchpoints (such as vehicle livery) we aim to create a brand purpose that keeps the business relevant and exciting for new and potential future clients.

McQuillan Companies – in their own words:

McQuillan Companies are a Northern Ireland based family run business which incorporates a diverse range of activities including civil engineering, demolition, quarrying, hazardous and non-hazardous waste management, outdoor cleaning services and analytical chemistry. A fourth generation business operating for over 100 years through the parent company John McQuillan Contracts, the McQuillan Companies name is synonymous with quality and excellence throughout our various divisions.

Getting started we focussed our research and investigation to forward-thinking, modern brands in the engineering, construction and land service industry – looking to London, New York and further afield. With brand learning’s from across the globe we built a solid understanding of what branding was working and not working in this industrial landscape. Following initial research and mood boarding, we filtered the findings down into 3 solid directions and began brand planning.

We initially developed the narrative before jumping into the design for McQuillan Companies. The narrative on this occasion was ‘Here for tomorrow’ – a modern, forward-thinking strapline for a modern, forward thinking business who are, in effect working on making tomorrow a better, safer place to live. We purposely avoided building or construction clichés so that the narrative was widespread across the entire company intern breeding a positive brand culture – essentially this narrative has legs to be flexible across different business facets.

We now needed a logo mark that reflected what we were talking about in the narrative. The McQuillan monogram stems from the idea of engineering and overall solid work that the company undertake. The new logo is a strong, trustworthy mark that brings together the initials of the family name and visualises the industry – simply. Our goal for any brand undertaking is to simplify, make brands that people get, without the use of selfish design techniques or trends. The logo proves successful when used across brand materials and especially in the brand livery and uniforms. Alongside the new mark, we introduced a structured contemporary typeface that suits the tone of voice and industry of McQuillan Companies. The flexibility of the new identity becomes apparent across the different business sectors where the company sector is simply introduced to the stacked lettering in each instance. Throughout the new branding, we have directed the new photography style, using modern dramatic images of the work in progress as well as team members in situ.

The crescendo of the brand audit was the re-design and use of the new branding across the vehicles. The vehicles that define a McQuillan job have been reinvented for future use and business growth, utilising the flexibility of the new logo mark and brand narrative they suitably stand out on the roads and truthfully represent the businesses heritage and future.

It was a pleasure working on the brand audit for McQuillan Companies and we look forward to rolling out the brand collateral in the not too distant future.

Blast 106 FM Brand Development

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Belfast’s most music station Blast FM approached Kaizen Brand Evolution to design and develop a new brand identity system for their group of radio stations across the UK and Ireland. Blast FM has been live on air for a number of years and reached a point of significant growth, and they needed a brand identity that was going to help propel them to even greater heights, appealing to more listeners. The market of radio is highly competitive and the team at Blast FM needed a unique identity to truly reflect what they offer and stand out in their industry landscape.  Blast Fm’s brief was to create a modern, recognisable identity that spoke to their core audience correctly as well as being bright and bold. They wanted something that was going to stand out within the market, showing them as one of the leading players within the industry. A unique request was to include a WAV file of an important figurehead from Blast FM talking who had recently passed, a touching piece of communication now represented forever in their brand mark. Blast FM as a group own 7 further stations and a part of the challenge was to create their identity so that it could become a flexible mark, easily recognisable across all markets, as well as being easily adapted in colour and name for other stations whilst retaining the group look and feel.

We designed a flexible identity system around the concept of the play button. The play button represents radio, music, playfulness and fun so we thought it was the perfect symbolism for the group identity. We also introduced a secondary keyline surrounding the play button to represent movement, volume and radio signal. Utilising the play button’s shape we were able to house the frequencies of each station and the WAV file from the brief. The play button acts as the boilerplate brand mark for the set of group marks, on each of the different stations identities the colours change as well as the frequencies of the related station. The name of each station and it’s geographical location sits to the left of the button and is easily interchangeable as the brand rolls out across the remaining stations – Blast Fm Belfast, Iur Fm Newry & Mourne, ABC across the ABC region, Blast Digital Glasgow, Your Fm Stockport, Blast Blackburn and Blast Northwest. Each station adopts its own unique colour system, each palette as bright and eye-catching as the last. This approach keeps the group brand profile true across all business areas and reinforces the brand personality across the UK and Ireland.

Along with the play mark, we introduced black and white art direction for the brand imagery. The choice for black and white imagery was primarily to place further emphasis on the identity and its bold colour palette. The two, when designed together, marry very well and create an over well rounded, bright and modern identity with a considerable and noticeable change from their previous brand identity. The photography is primarily portraiture of key musicians featured on playlists from the respective radio station. Each set of images is put together in a concertina format for use across social media, advertising and in print. We also introduced a set of geometric 3-dimensional backgrounds for the Blast FM brand rollout which can be seen on their social media channels. The geometric shapes and 3D effect simply adds depth to the brand mark and creates a more modern corporate brand world for the new mark to thrive in.

As the brand rollout continues across the entire group we look forward to creating further digital and printed collateral. As brand guardians for each of the business facets, we have a clear understanding of how the branding should be treated across all mediums. We thoroughly enjoyed the design and developments of the brand system for Blast FM and look forward to seeing the branding out in the real world as it begins to evolve.

GB Poultry Brand Development

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The family business of GB Poultry contacted Kaizen Brand Evolution wanting to their refresh the identity of their well known brand. GB stands for Gregory Bell which is the family name of the business established since 1982 that has been passed down the generations. In their own words “GB Poultry Ltd is a family owned business based in Crossgar in the rolling countryside of County Down”. There are 7 Directors in the company, all from the Bell family who are personally involved and committed to the general day to day running and operating of the business. An EC Approved Cutting plant and are guided by DAERA (Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs). Supplying a wide range of Whole Chicken, Flash Fried Chicken, Sauces, Cooked Chicken, Turkeys and other meat products. GB Poultry wanted to modernise their brand and bring it into the future as they are leading in their field of poultry in Ireland. Supplying to outlets such as Boojum, Pallas Foods and Henderson a refresh of brand is what they wanted to align with their customers aspirations.

One of the main USPs that GB Poultry wanted to bring across is that they are from Crossgar, a small village in County Down, we travelled down to their offices and were met by fields upon fields! They are very proud of where they come from therefore we have come up with the tagline ‘A Taste of Crossgar’ as an important part of narrative of their brand. This brings in the origin of the product and also links to the taste of which is also developed in Crossgar.

The previous logo consisted of a cooked chicken and a wreath, similar to your traditional styled butchers, our creative studio updated this with a modern rounded typeface which gives connotations of friendly and approachability. We created a custom vector illustration of a chicken to match the rounded typeface. We have selected the colour scheme of a dark grey and light blue palette which gives a refreshing difference from their usual red and green branding. We have used the colour separation of the blue and white two toned logo for the GB and the Poultry text.

When we travelled to Crossgar we noticed the beautiful landscape around it, we captured this by creating a custom illustration of fields with trees, tractors and chickens in it that can be rolled across their branding. We used textures and muted colour palette for this to utilise the brand and the modern logo, they bring across the farm aspect of the brand. GB Poultry have several products requiring packaging design, this includes sauces, flash fried chicken and cooked chicken which flavours they create themselves. The flash fried chicken products are readily available from most local shops, make sure you try them out. We have visualised up three different types of products, sauces, salt & chilli chicken goujons and breaded chicken burgers using three different colour schemes to define the different products. The packaging is a sticker on the products which sit on shelf with all of their competitors therefore the bright colours of blues will stand out. The brand roll out includes tone of voice, business stationery, packaging, vehicle graphics and signage.

We greatly enjoyed working with Bell family on their brand refresh for GB Poultry and we are looking forward to seeing the packaging roll out and the well known vans on the road.

Belfast Mens Health Logo Design

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Belfast Men’s Health Group (BMHG) is made up a group of people across the community of Belfast and volunteer organisations across Northern Ireland, all with a strong interest in the health and well being of men, by raising awareness of all the main health issues relevant to men and sharing events of interest across Greater Belfast.

BMHG provide a range of information shared by experts who really are experts in their fields. Organising meet up events, provide videos, podcasts and even hosting competitions, they want men to really feel good about themselves and to look after others. BMHG want to make sure there is access to all the relevant information where ever you are.

In their words:

“Belfast Men’s Health Group is a made up of representatives across statutory, community and volunteer organisations across Belfast with a strong interest in the health and well-being of men. Each year we celebrate Men’s Health Week and International Men’s Health Day by organise events to raise awareness of health issues that are relevant to men. We also work with other agencies at other health events to raise further awareness. We are developing the work of the group and a website to further evidence of our ambitions.”

Initially approaching Kaizen Brand Evolution on a website, designed to help them share a range of media and information to a wider audience, our working relationship grew. After our first studio meeting, BMHG noticed our wall of clients and our portfolio of work, it was at this point they decided to rebrand their logo as they felt it was outdated, and it wasn’t communicating the tone of their current direction.

BMHG wanted a logo that worked along side the Northern Health and Social Care Trust branding, they wanted it look like a sub brand to the Northern Health and Social Care Trust and to feel like a brand you can really trust with some sensitive topics within the health and general well being of men.

Hoping to show people that they were a Belfast based organisation, whilst also hinting at what they stand for. They also didn’t want a logo that was too clinical, so this became our challenge to produce a mark, which would become instantly recognisable, corporate and memorable to men across Belfast.

We created a device using the B for Belfast, removing the counters and replacing with the cross for health. The colours are more of a muted blue, which when in use is quite corporate and masculine. The B+ device could be used as a window what information BMHG has to offer, the logo will work well online, email signatures, on t-shirts, beanies and also work on pop up banners, and flyers for events. The use of blue helps the logo have confidence, and feels trust worthy.

We are also creating a website for Belfast Men’s Health Group which will be their audience’s digital handbook for anything and everything they need to know about Men’s Health and well-being. The website will include a range of videos, podcasts, blogs and links to other websites in a visual and clear manner, to help men understand the importance of good health and uniting together. The site will be launching during Men’s Health Week in September 2018.

It will be great to see how their new logo will be used around Belfast, knowing they are helping Men across Greater Belfast.

Day & Age – Brand Development

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Day and Age, creators of short films, use video to make sure the little moments are never forgotten. Kathryn approached Kaizen Brand Evolution when she wanted to steer Day and Age in a new direction, when she wanted to hand her brand identity over to safe hands for an all over evaluation, and when she wanted to evolve her business.

Starting from a young age Kathryn was capturing videos for weddings, corporate insights and family events. Day and Age is now pushing forward to new areas of film, looking to create memorable films that become powerful memory aids. Focusing on making memories and treasuring each moment, whether it be for promotion or an event, a memory for someone that may forget, or even just to give as a gift – Kathryn creates the most beautiful and effective videos.

To display this evolution of the business, we took the Day and Age brand and re-focused it. A brand that will appeal to the current, the new, and the expanding target audience. Kathryn and ourselves agreed that that bold and fitting name of the business should remain, everything else we could assess, address and push in the right direction.  

Throughout the process, it was clear what Day and Age represented and what it would bring to each of its clients-memories. A Day and Age film would provide a beautiful memory aid and so much more. With memories, nostalgia and capturing the moment in mind, we came up with the suitable brand language that would surround the brand. The strapline ‘Memory Studio’ helped give definition to the name, explaining exactly what Day and Age is. They create memories and help you ‘Remember each day’.  

The brand identity itself was provided as a wordmark and an abbreviated device ‘D and A’ to apply throughout any brand extensions. We found the connection between the initials of the brand and term ‘DNA’ riveting. Day and Age’s main aim is to celebrate families and individuals, all about the ‘DNA’. Displaying this connection subtly through the abbreviated device meant the ‘Day and Age’ name still held prevalence.  The versatile device can be applied in many different ways to connect you directly back to the Day and Age name while highlighting the ‘DNA’ or ‘D and A’. We used the combination of a rounded and modern font to reflect personality, approachability and style, a brand that you would want to work with and trust.

The colour palette and imagery came naturally from the Day and Age films.  Using all stills from taken footage, we could see how well the brand would work. We applied a soft and neutral colour palette to compliment the brand identity, language and each film. Not to distract, but to honour the nature of the brand and each film. 

We are now seeing the brand come together to display a clear focus and direction, the direction that Day and Age were and are aiming for. The new Identity is tailored to evolving clients, through narrative, identity and finally the implementation, whilst still appealing to a greater audience. Day and Age creates memories, but it can also still cater to and appeal to any possible film seeking client.

We continue to work with Day and Age, rolling out their new brand across various different forms of stationery and promotional materials. The new brand is coming to life and complimenting all the great work that we are seeing from Day and Age. It is a pleasure to work with such elegant content and now a new brand that compliments that content. We look forward to seeing where the business and new brand goes from here.

Graze, Belfast – Brand Audit & Logo Refresh

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Graze is a restaurant based in Ballyhackamore, East Belfast. They love serving tasty little dishes (also know as tapas). These dishes are full of flavours using quality local produce, paired with your favourite wines. Graze is a great place to enjoy your tapas as they have created an atmosphere that is comfortable, friendly and the ideal place for people who just love great quality food and drink. Graze has made a name for themselves because of their special fish dishes, which change daily, based on the catch that morning.

In their own words:
“The Graze experience is about more than just food. A sincere effort to educate our staff on all aspects of food and wine culture is the basis for our service philosophy. We take great pride in our relaxed style of service and our welcoming staff at Graze go to great lengths to make diners feel at ease, comfortable and well taken care of.”

As well as the restaurant serving tapas & wine, Graze has the Lounge; soft lighting, with dark interiors and comfortable seating makes the Lounge feel relaxing. It’s known for their range of local Gins, craft beers and ciders.

Graze really know how to make your experience extra special; with their resident mixologist, who will make you some amazing drinks and cocktails.

Graze love their Gins so much they have their own Gin Club. Get involved in their monthly club where you can try 5 new gins, and shown how you can serve them up yourself.

Graze approached Kaizen Brand Evolution to create a brand audit for their restaurant because they wanted a brand which was consistent, and reached a new audience of late 20’s early 30 year olds. Graze’s approach has always been simple, so we felt we needed to create a branding system, which would be easy to use. They will be able to use across all of their marketing for both online and offline. It had to be simple for them to use. It had to stand out from their competitors and it most of all had to be consistent.

To create a brand that really represents Graze and develop a brand identity really needed. The previous brand and the food didn’t pair well so we took inspiration from everything within Graze, from the dishes they serve to the colours used in the interiors of the restaurant.

The Graze brand combines a word mark with a personality, a popping friendly colour palette and referencing the tiles they have in their interior. We developed a tone of voice which is friendly, and sounds familiar, it reminds you to “Enjoy the little things” in life and to cherish those moments with friends, family and to be surrounded by great food and drink.

As well as the branding system we produced a range of visuals to show them how the brand could be used across different mediums; including work uniform (aprons and chef jackets), interior signage, exterior signage and menus.

I enjoyed working with Graze on this branding project; I can’t wait to see the branding all over social media and Ballyhackamore. I’d like to see Graze develop into a restaurant, where people come from all over to try their tapas and gin.

I hope Graze sets the mark for what tapas should really be all about.

Meet our evolutionaries – Dawn

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1.What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?

The main thing it’s taught me is adaptability. The world of design is fast moving and it’s so important to evolve with it and to be able to work on a wide range of projects. It’s also taught me that you can’t just think like a designer making pretty pictures, you have to think like a marketeer, an advertiser, a strategist, an accountant, a business owner and a consumer to ensure you get the best and most effective results for your client. Oh and it has to look good too.

2.Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?

Burford. It’s not one I use all the time, but it’s a really creative typeface that you use by building layers. It consists of base layers, top layers and bottom layers that you can have a lot of fun with. It would definitely keep me entertained and give me something to do if I was stuck on a desert island!

3.What do you use for motivation inside the studio?

When I’m in need of some serious motivation, there’s nothing for it but headphones and heavy tunes. Anything from ASIWYFA, Daft Punk, Royal Blood, Muse or Biffy Clyro depending on how I’m feeling.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?

I’ve been following/stalking Morag Myerscough on Instagram since I was at her talk in Offset last year. I love her use of bright colours and typography. I really want to decorate my house in this style, but I might need to invest in some super strength sunglasses first.

5. What are you listening to in work today?

Today I’ve had a bit of 6 music with Father John Misty, and The Vaccines, Temples, and um Justin Bieber on Spotify. I have a very eclectic taste in music. Don’t judge.

6.Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out?

The Late Night Art Bus Tour is absolutely brilliant and definitely worth checking out. The bus takes you round various galleries and street art in Belfast, often to places you’d never think of going to. Some of the stops even include a glass of wine, so it’s a super night out, very inspiring and great craic.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them.

Sadly, I’m currently petless. I did have 3 goldfish but it didn’t end well. Nuff said.

Code Fixer – Branding

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Codefixer are a small web design and development company based on the Malone Road, Belfast. They design websites for a range of clients  across many different industries all over Ireland. Codefixer are one of the few companies that specialise in Google Ad words, SEO friendly websites and Analytics. Having this all under one roof helps give you the ultimate package for your business. They make the whole experience very easy for your business and needs.

In their own words:

“Codefixer offers a comprehensive range of first class web design and development solutions including e-commerce and WordPress, that coupled with our extensive skillset in SEO and Pay Per Click helps all types of websites punch above their weight.

Whether you are a small to medium sized business, a start-up to a multi million pound online business we’re confident that we can help you improve and get more of out your online business. Our success is due to our hunger to succeed and provide web solutions that exceed client expectations.”

Codefixer came to Kaizen Brand Evolution wanting a new look to their brand. The old brand was out-dated and didn’t match the professionalism and years of experience Codefixer had. It just looked cheap and amateurish and this was so far from the truth. In fact they have been in this industry for just over 15 years. Codefixer wanted a refreshing logo that would set them apart from the industry landscape. They needed to look like a professional web design studio who you want to look after your online presence. As being a company who works with the internet they are potentially competing in global market not just local. The current brand doesn’t do Codefixer and justice.

Our approach was to create a memorable logo, which is future-proof; we wanted it to say exactly what sector they were in without looking like your typical web design company. We created a logo that would easily develop into a brand with sub logos.

In the meantime it had to be a logo that covered all basis of what Codefixer do into an eye-catching design, which prominently worked across all screens from mobile devices to desktop.

The mark is a inspired by the language of code. A main object is written in square brackets ‘code’ followed by an instruction ‘fixer’ in this case. This language is written in lowercase (computers don’t understand uppercase). The [code]fixer mark can easily be written when the logo isn’t present on any device and will become instantly recognisable. The use of azure blue helps reach out to more corporate clients. This blue makes the business feel trust worthing and reliable.

The new logo will be used on social media, Linked In, their own website and possible print materials.

I believe the new mark will help them get the business and clients they want for their business.  The logo will be able to work well for training course and possible coding events in the future in Belfast and across Ireland.

 

Active Health – Brand Development

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Holywood based Active Health Solutions approached the team at Kaizen Brand Evolution to reposition their brand identity to tie in with their plans to build a new website and a re-fit to their facility on Hibernia Street. Investment into their online service and internal facilities sparked the requirement to refresh their entire brand identity from their logo mark to their brand purpose and narrative. Active Health Solutions required a fresh, contemporary brand audit that reflected their ambitions for the business and a brand that spoke to new and existing clientele.

In their own words:

We are a company of passionate health care professionals providing a holistic, multidisciplinary approach to healthcare from our bespoke clinic in Holywood, County Down. Our mix of services include Physiotherapy, Podiatry, Chiropody, Massage Therapy, Pilates, Personal Training, as well as the provision of Occupational Physiotherapy to a number of large companies and organisations across Northern Ireland and Ireland.

Active Health Solutions was started in 2006 by husband and wife team David & Rachel Saligari who are both are highly trained Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy Specialists who met while completing their Masters of Manual Therapy in Perth, Western Australia. They and their clinical staff pride themselves on providing the most up to date and evidence based treatments available. Whatever your requirements, you will be directed to the health care professional within the company with the expertise to solve your problems and achieve your goals.

Utilising their own description of Active Health Solutions we crafted a brand narrative and identity that would help re-position the business as market leaders, experts and forward thinkers. The first port of call was the logo mark itself. In a brand audit we retain and refresh rather that re-invent. This ‘refresh’ was a modern take on their existing mark, a contemporary word mark with considered typographic detailing using the ‘sportier’ glyphs found in ITC Avant Garde along with a simplistic ‘Plus’ brand device that the business can introduce as a nod to the health industry as well as reflecting that they are a physiotherapy business at the core “PLUS’ so much more. A key piece of the audit was also to remove the word ‘solutions’ from the primary brand mark – this decision came into play rather early in the design process, we felt that ‘solutions’ was too generic a word to describe the full set of services on offer at Active Health. This was an easy removal for the business owners as most clients refer to the business as ‘Active Health’.

We introduced the narrative ‘Activate your Health’ to use across all branded touch points both online an in print. Activate your health is a direct call to action for the brand and acts on its own as almost a sub brand for the business to use around the building, on advertising and in any promotional material they produce. With the logo mark and brand language set in place the colour palette and photography direction was next in completion of the brand audit. The colour palette reflects the previous branding, rather than using a primary lime green, we have introduced a pastel scheme to accompany a beautiful blue grey. The colour symbolises renewal and growth, addressing the key selling points of Active Health Solutions. The photography direction is focussed, dramatic and telling of the services carried out at Active Health – we wanted to move away from the traditional stock photography direction of clients smiling in a clinical environment, something that this market is saturated in. The imagery is much more though provoking and speciality focussed.

Active Health are currently working on refreshing their website with us, creating an informative, user friendly experience online, all reflective of their service in store.

Mongey Communications – Branding

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Mongey Communications tasked the Kaizen Brand Evolution studio with a full company rebrand of their hugely successful communications business based in Co. Kildare. The work that Mongey carry out is instantly recognisable across the island of Ireland with reach across audio and visual in some of the most prestigious sporting and high profile events across Ireland, not to mention their security communications and audio work. Mongey communications reputation is exceptional, however their brand identity was falling behind. We created a new brand purpose for the business including strong brand narrative, ident and brand vision for future growth and success.

In their own words:

Mongey Communications , founded by brothers David and Cyril Mongey is built on over 30 years worth of experience in the sound and communications market. Operating throughout Ireland, the company has the commitment, resources and experience needed to provide a comprehensive audio-visual and communications solution for any event, project or venue.

We have developed an enviable reputation in providing AV and communications solutions for the event industry in Ireland in the sporting, cultural and entertainment arenas.

We are experts at providing first rate audio-video solutions. This is our job. We have been doing this for the past 20 years at some of the biggest events Ireland has ever witnessed, from the hugely successful Ryder Cup in 2006 to all the rugby and soccer internationals in Landsdowne Road and Croke Park.”

Our first challenge was the name, we believed that the name Mongey stood alone in its own right as a recognisable name, so we decided to drop the ‘communications’ from the brand paving the way for a simple, clever mark. As we investigated further with narrative and storytelling for Mongey we introduced the ‘MORE” concept. More audio, More visual, More CCTV for example. This alliteration makes the Mongey name synonymous with More than communications. This new strapline also aids Mongey for growth and introduction of new technologies, which the company pride themselves on. Any new technique of communicating to audiences Mongey is an early adapter, from Walkie Talkies to drone work they are a progressive, contemporary business with focus on the future. All of these business attributes have been considered in the new branding for Mongey.

The new Mongey mark is very much an audit of the original abbreviation “MC” that they used as their brand identity for many years, we felt this was the best approach for the business, to recognise success by treating the logo mark as a contemporary 21st century brand system with modern values. The M becomes the device for the brand and evokes the sense of the Mongey personal touch. This personal ‘signature’ style was crucial in reflecting how the Mongey business is very much a family business, a subtle but relatable hint. The remaining word mark takes a very modern, structured approach. Increased kerning and valued space between letters in the mark improve its visibility on screen and in print. We have retained the original Mongey red palette and introduced a beautiful Teal palette to work alongside it, as well as a brand image library full of high impact, abstract photos. The photo direction is an important factor in the new Mongey brand as it propels Mongey as a stand out communications company. Competitors traditionally use images of their actual equipment, screens and speakers we have focused on the experience that Mongey brings to a project with bright, dramatic shots of fibre optics, close ups of audio systems and even high impact visuals of the types of events that Mongey has experience of working in.

The brand itself has extensive reach across Ireland which we as a studio are excited about, from Croke Park to Kingspan Stadium the Mongey brand is now prepared to soar across Ireland successfully. It was a pleasure to work on and we look forward to continuing the brand roll out across print and digital.

Meet our evolutionaries – Dean

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?

From only being here a week, I’ve noticed how fast-paced the studio can be, you always need to be on the ball.

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?

Odd place to use a typeface; I love geometric typefaces, I’d take LL Circular, it’s fun, and has character…

3. What do you use for motivation inside the studio?

Flicking through some design books, drinking coffee (black, no sugar) and being surrounded by creative people.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?

I’ve been stalking Tony Futura over a year now. He’s a fantastic conceptual artist, creating tongue in cheek visuals. It’s different.

5. What are you listening to in work today?

Today I’ve listening to Eric Prydz (he’s coming to Belfast in June) always puts me in a happy mood, love his visual work to (GMUNK). I usually try to sneak in some hard house and hardcore.

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out? 

I’m looking forward to an exhibition called ‘The Museum of the Moon’ (W5). It on 10th Feb to 4th March. It involves a massive installation of the Moon. I’m get excited by new uses of technology.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them.

Heidi and Kitkat, Heidi’s a cross between a Dachshund and a Bichon, then there’s Kitkat (Chunky). She’s a massive cat.

Offset 2018 – 5 reasons to attend a design conference

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In 2009 Dublin opened it’s doors to a new and exciting conference for design creatives. Starting out in the Liberty Hall, with 411 seats to fill, the Offset festival has significantly grown. The conference now takes over the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre for one weekend every year. Filling around 2,500 seats, two stages, workshops and activities, making Offset one of the world’s most inspirational, educational and vocational conferences for the design and creative industries. A weekend we would suggest – not to be missed. 

Each year the studio makes the best efforts to get down to the festival. This year was no exception. Here is why we find Offset to be such a beneficial part of a designers calendar.

1. To Learn

In the design industry, we believe that we are learning every day. This is true. However, to hear from the leading creatives in the industry, you are likely to learn a little more than the average day at the studio. From the first talk of the weekend, we are gathering information and not always from the particular field that we work in. We can learn from the thought processes of any creative, illustrators, fashion designers or even photographers. Offset provides a range of workshops, this year they were run by Facebook’s Creative Shop. Workshops are run at a much smaller scale and provide a more personal learning experience. We attended a workshop ‘Create Fast’. Showing how the industry leaders advertise and how anyone can apply their techniques to a scale that suits best. 

2. To get the Inspirational Hit

The weekend at Offset flies in every year, but what is evident is the boost and lift you feel after the conference. It could be down to a range of things. The dance moves thrown at the delegate party, the work shown on anything other than a Pinterest board or maybe the array of talent displayed by creatives. Designers that started off just like us. The conference is a constant reminder with every talk that ordinary talented people are creating the work we look up to and aspire to. A lot of the talks, give us a personal insight into the speaker’s journey taken, to where they are now. Then the background to some of their projects, reviewing what they have learned along the way. Adam Brimm from Adam & Eve/ DDB highlighted that the smallest and most random of ideas can turn into some of the most effective advertisements. Then, on the other hand, Frith Kerr discussed how all of her projects stem from one Truth, every project develops from one simple truth. Both small tips that can go a long way and can be forgotten or overlooked in our usual routine. 

3. To be Surrounded by Your People

Offset has grown a lot over the years, it still fascinates us just how many creatives we are surrounded by at the conference, speakers and audience members. The conference is a friendly reminder and celebration of the size of the creative industry. There is something to be said about a 2,500 person group of people that can empathise exactly with you. After a stressful or successful week in the studio, there will be at least one speaker that you can identify with from your own experiences. This year Irish design studio Red Dog discussed their 25 years in business, their ups and downs, many of which we could feel exactly, and provided us all with a good laugh along the way. 

4. To Treat Yourself

Maybe not the most important reason to attend a conference, but let’s not forget the goodies. The drinks, the food, the prints. What’s even better at offset all the treats and freebies look great.

5. To Appreciate the Industry

65% of Offset attendees are professionals working in the industry. Like many others, our studio is a happy, creative and very busy one. As creatives, we can often forget to appreciate what we do, forget to enjoy our work and appreciate that we are getting paid to do what we love. Taking a break from the computer screen, the meeting room, the studio and getting out of town to celebrate the industry and the people we work with is exactly what we would recommend. Hearing everyone’s stories and remembering your own, catching up with friends at one of the after parties and meeting people with jobs you would never have imagined helps remind us to appreciate this exciting industry we are in.

Whether it be Offset, or any other design festival or conference, we would suggest making the effort to attend. We are back to the studio with a spring in our step, a drive to do more and lots of prints that will need framing. 

Poppogoblin

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Poppogoblin are a healthy focussed café/juice bar situated on Alfred St, Belfast. They have garnered a reputation for fantastic, delicious healthy alternatives for lunch and for having warm friendly staff that make the entire experience with Poppogoblin one to remember. The owners approached Kaizen Brand Evolution to re-position the branding for plans to refresh the business alongside an interior fit out and a unique Poppogoblin juice range. The businesses reputation an integral part of their offering, which became apparent in our own research into customer, reviews on trip advisor and the broad social media landscape. One thing that was reoccurring was the focus on how the customers where blown away by how friendly and lovely the staff were in Poppogoblin, which immediately set them apart from competitors and highlights their brand purpose. With the brand purpose in mind we made sure to include hints to the unique offering in their brand identity, narrative and tone of voice.

The brand mark itself reveals a smile in the typography, which is paired alongside a re-draw of their infamous lotus flower. The ‘smile’ in the typography immediately triggers a sense of positivity and the experience that Poppogoblin offers as a destination – you’re going to leave smiling. To balance the re-enforce the logo mark we introduced the strapline ‘eat smart, smile more’ – a strapline that sets the tone for the entire re-brand. You can now see as the brand launches in their signage, on their menus and even on their newly launched food truck – ‘eat smart, smile more’ is as dominant in the design as the logo itself, highlighting the power language can play on your brand.

Colour choice was a delight for Poppogoblin, healthy modern pastels we’ll call them help extend the brand reach to the modern diner without isolated a particular gender or mind-set. You can dine in Poppogoblin if you are vegan, veggie, and carnivore – any palette really so we kept the colour scheme open and friendly as to represent the brand purpose fully. Photography plays a role in telling the brand story of Poppogoblin to which we called upon one of our favourite Architectural, interior and food photographers Donal McCann. Donal’s shots extend the brand direction fantastically, capturing the warmth and friendly atmosphere as well as the beautiful food and drinks on offer.

Brand launch began some months ago in the background of the shop façade. Behind the scenes our team were building the full responsive website for Poppogoblin as well as preparing the social media channels for launch. The website utilises Donal McCann’s photo-shoot alongside beautiful typography, layout and brand placement. The full screen imagery on the site play a hug roll in telling the brand story and giving you a taste of the Poppogoblin experience on your desktop, on your mobile, anywhere really. We ensured that the brand roll out kept on track with the vision from the branding exercise. This extended into quality control with signage companies, interior fit out teams, vehicle wrap companies and juice bottle label manufacturers. We always like to keep a close eye on things as roll out happens, acting as full brand guardians as a brand starts to launch. This process and relationship with a brand extends our reach and expertise in the branding process and ensures that your investment in the brand is realised and achieved correctly as agreed.

Poppogoblin is a fantastic case study for us a brand designers, the brand itself highlights how every aspect of your brand can be considered for maximum purpose. The Poppogoblin brand identity, language and brand guidelines are all set in place for a bright future.

Meet our evolutionaries – Ciara

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?

Other than all the practical do’s and don’ts, form and function.  Working in Kaizen Brand Evolution has taught me a lot about the customer focus, everyone has a different eye, therefor, see’s things differently, something you have to always keep in mind.

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?

Brandon Grotesque is hot. It would totally be my sidekick. So versatile, friendly, strong…

3. What do you use for motivation inside the studio? 

I find working in a studio with a group of talented designers motivational. I can look around the room at any time and be impressed, interested and motivated by all the amazing work going on around me. That and some heavy tunes.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?

I am always stalking every designer. Recently I have been obsessing over Young Jerks. I’d recommend anyone to check out their work.

5. What are you listening to in work today?

I hate to admit it, but DJ Ryan Stanfield has usually got the best mix on. If I need to focus, I will usually listen to some small angsty band or Little Mix.

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out? 

I am so proud of Belfast and how well the creative scene has blossomed the last few years, there is a beautiful new mural every few months. The Black box puts on a walking tour and exhibition of Belfast street art, I’d love to go.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them.

My favourite thing in the world is my cat Kitty. She is small, black, and very noisy. She always has her tongue out, unless she is drinking milk or giving kisses.

Punchestown Racecourse

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Punchestown approached Kaizen Brand Evolution to perform a re-brand for their established and celebrated racecourse and entertainment venue. We re-positioned the Punchestown brand by creating an engaging narrative and strategy for the business. With focus on the new ‘Town’ campaign we developed a suite of versatile straplines to use across the new brand roll out and marketing campaigns.

The Punchestown Festival is considered amongst the Racing community as the equivalent to the Wimbledon of Tennis and the Augusta of Golf. The best of the best from far and wide and the entire annual racing season compete at Punchestown. The sheer audience and exposure of the Punchestown brand provided the need to keep their identity and advertising fresh and representative of their unique offering.

There is a deep history at Punchestown Racecourse, which helped immensely in the craft of the brand narrative, from the famous horses, trainers and events that have taken place there is much more than meets the eye at Punchestown. The racecourse is not only synonymous with racing, there is so much more to the venue, from music festivals, corporate catering, family days, hospitality and new years celebrations to name a few.

We felt that the best way for us to communicate the wider offering was to generate a campaign that’s going to be immediately representative of the brand and evoke the emotions and sense that you feel when attending events at the racecourse. This is where the “TOWN” campaign was born. Developing the campaign narrative from the courses namesake, presented potential mileage for the brand and its campaigns immediately and it seemed like an organic development for the branding. With the TOWN campaign decided upon we generated a suite of potential Irish colloquialisms, sayings and relative straplines that would become the driving force behind the new brand identity. ‘Get out of town’ was a saying that marries a few points at once, which we explored on launch.

The idea of getting out of Dublin Town to visit Punchestown is the initial response to this phrase, however we’ve blended a traditional Irish colloquialism in the messaging “get out of town’ also gets used when you’re surprised to hear or see something. i.e. ‘I got a new Ferrari handed to me by my boss’ – the response would be “get out of town’. So the narrative bar was set, to communicate on two levels and engage vocally through the brand materials.

With the narrative and strategy in place we could work the craft of the logo and brand materials. The logo, which features the Punchestown Fox (identifiable through the years across each variation their brand history) has been brought into the 21st century with the use of a fresh new type family and custom fox mascot, who sits neatly above the TOWN letters, harking back to the narrative and campaign messaging.

We introduced a contemporary colour palette for the brand, keeping yet improving on the notorious Punchestown red we added a seasonal suite of colours to be used across the festival graphics, easily identifiable with the likes of Spring, Summer, Autumn Winter festival days. The colour flexibility has really strengthened the brand materials and creates an immediate association with a time of year at Punchestown. Primary colours explore pairings that compliment the Punchestown red, gold and a deep navy.

Once the brand elements are married together it is clear to see the visual results of the successful re-brand, which now addresses the ambition of Punchestown as a business. The new brand identity and campaigns stand out from their local and national competitors. Everything from the strategy, narrative, identity, implementation and management of the brand has been considered and carefully treated to ensure absolute success as the brand evolves. We absolutely loved working on this brand as a studio and we continue to work with Punchestown as brand guardians and as the racing seasons come around.

Watch Tech

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Watch Portfolio Management is a well-established business specialising in financial guidance with many clients reaching from the UK to Australia. Watch Portfolio Management is based in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, and is known for their financial advice that leads businesses that have gone into insolvency to find solutions. This, however, is no longer the case! Watch Portfolio Management decided they would approach Kaizen Brand Evolution to create an identity for their cutting edge software, that they primarily would use for daily tasks, as going forward they would like to be seen as a financial software business. This software is to be called Watch Tech. The interface is easy to use and finds information fast making it the best financial insolvency software on the market.

To creating the brands identity we needed to first fully understand the industry landscape that Watch Tech would be positioning itself alongside. We researched and developed clear directions to take our brand ideas based on Watch Tech’s potential competitors in the financial, security and tech sectors. Learning from our research we found what was working and what wasn’t necessarily relevant moving forward with the creation of Watch Tech’s identity. It became clear that a simple, modern identity would be best to represent this brand effectively.

Now that our styling has been determined from our research the identity soon followed. A potential branding direction that we explored was revitalising Watch Portfolio Managements shield to link Watch Tech to it’s heritage, as well as to show the software’s strength and durability when it comes to protecting your financial well being. However, the brand chosen to represent Watch Tech was our identity representing “financial growth”. This mark, illustrating a positive outlook, is a meaningful graphic that lends itself to the company’s primary objective for its clients. The brand mark uses three primary bars linked by two diagonal bars in the background giving a ribboning effect to shape into a “W” ultimately representing Watch Tech. Looking back on our research we decided to use a corporate typeface in a variety of weights to blend with our modern brand mark. This typeface joined with our brand mark comes together to create our Watch Tech Logo.

Following the design of the brands elements we were able to focus more on what our brands message would be. Watch Tech is really the first financial insolvency software to come onto the market and we decided “Pioneering financial insolvency software” would be a good direction for their brand language. Our taglines to follow this direction are “faster, stronger.” and “better, smarter.” to illustrate how superior this software is in comparison to other financial insolvency software’s and its main selling points the software can provide. Leading from this language our imagery shows the idea of exploration and moving forward to illustrate Watch Techs brand message.

With our logo and language already decided the next step in our process is to show our strategy in regards to how the logo would be implemented. The new Watch Tech logo is a strong shape with distinguishing features making it recognisable individually. It’s because of this that we decided to use the outlined shape of the brand mark as a device to house imagery. Imagery on print, signage and online would follow this strategy or be full bleed with the brand mark positioned accordingly alongside our brand messages. We didn’t just create a new brand identity for a piece of software we created a new platform and style for a new business to follow going forward.

The Cookie Jar

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The Cookie Jar is a well-established bakery situated in the beautiful surroundings of the Mourne Mountains. Since 1965 The Cookie Jar have been baking some of the country’s best known breads and sweet treats, from Wheaten bread to Soda bread, Fruit Bannock and beyond they have built on their Grandmothers fame across Northern Ireland and kept true to her original recipes. To this day owner James has kept every recipe his grandmother created the same, as they were in the 60’s – a testament to the quality of the products. From their premises in Newcastle, County Down The Cookie Jar noticed that there was high demand for their traditional Irish baking outside of the bakery shop and across the world. Ex-pats living in Australia, America and Europe seek the traditional baked taste of home and The Cookie Jar was happy to help. The power to re-create your favourite Wheaten, Soda, Scones and much more from your home, no matter where you are in the globe spawned the idea of ‘Bake your own’ – The Cookie Jar’s solution, in the form of ingredient packages. The ingredients simply need water and oil added in order to re-create the beautiful taste of home, still with James’ Grandmothers original recipe. With increased interest and success of selling and shipping the ‘Bake your own’ model required a brand identity as well as some packaging design.

In creating the brand identity we needed a narrative for the brand that immediately told the brand story before a logo or package is seen. How do we sum up a traditional bakery that is famous for their product in Newcastle, Co. Down – Mourne and Bread. Mourne and Bread is the lead narrative that sets the foundation for the brand identity and tone of voice. Mourne and Bread addresses the surroundings in which the bread is created and recognises the tradition and nod to being ‘born and bred’ in the Mournes.

Now that we have the narrative the identity would soon follow. We created a brand mark that remembers the old identity through a revised wheat icon as well as bringing the texture of the work surfaces in the bakery to the type design. The textured type instantly tells the tale of the bakery and once paired with the new, improved colour palette the entire mark communicates as a fresh, contemporary identity. We created both stacked and horizontal logotypes for versatility across the branding both in print, signage and online.

Marketing and promotion for The Cookie Jar allowed us to build upon the narrative, copy and art direction – from ‘Mourne and Bread’ to ‘up here it’s bread into us’ and gorgeous, epic shots of the Mournes and dramatic bread shots the branding, when pieced together is very powerful.

Following the design and marriage of all branding elements we were able to focus on how the ‘Bake your own’ packaging would appear. Taking into account the direction of marketing material and storytelling across the brand we wanted this to continue. Utilising the ‘Bake your own’ theme we designed the packaging to reflect the homemade feel and resonate with the ‘crafty’ audience who would be baking the breads and mixes. We introduced scenic Mourne illustrations and photography to the package design as well as a contemporary ‘way-finding’ icon set to be used as the product list develops.

We not only got to develop a fantastic brand identity and strategy but we also had the pleasure of creating some of the delicious breads and scones in the studio. The ingredient bags make it so easy and believe me the results are delicious – personally I had the Wheaten Bread and Scones and both are incredible, highly recommend you try out The Cookie Jar.

 

 

Jane McClenaghan

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Jane McClenaghan owner of Vital Nutrition – Northern Irelands leading nutrition and healthy lifestyle brand approached Kaizen Brand Evolution to create an identity for herself in preparation for Jane’s evolution as a leading, national healthy lifestyle consultant. Jane has featured as part of Centra’s most recent influencer campaign and has appeared on BBC and numerous Food events across the province. Jane’s ambition is to be the figurehead for healthy living and nutrition, increasing her media coverage and crafting her ‘influencer’ brand presence.

The first step in the creative process was to fully understand the industry landscape that Jane aims to position herself as a stand-alone influencer. We researched and developed clear brand narratives based on Jane’s ambition and potential competitors in the healthy living/eating arena. Learning what is working and not necessarily working for some of the top brands was extremely important in the creation of Jane’s brand. As well as retaining the brand name ‘Jane McClenaghan’ we wanted to explore further options for her as a business, much like the way some influencers use nick names or brand names to trade under. Names such as Zoella, I Quit Sugar and Little Green Spoon have achieved major success from this approach. As one branding option we renamed Jane and presented her with “Nutrijane” as a potential brand direction – using this naming we seen potential for a clever brand strategy which would position her brand alongside the ‘quirky’ engaging names out there. In the end we stuck with Jane McClenaghan and plan to use Nutrijane throughout the brand emails and possible URL for her new website – so no idea un-used.

We designed a contemporary brand system for Jane McClenaghan to use across all of her marketing material both on and offline. We introduced a leaf to the word mark using negative space in the A to achieve instant brand recognition – summing up Jane’s offering and business objectives. Simplicity is the best policy here and when applied to type the negative space really speaks volumes for the entire brand identity. The logo itself positions the brand on the higher end of online influencers such as HEMSLEY + HEMSLEY, and Deliciously Ella which immediately resonates with Jane’s target audience. The unique blend of classic typography and clever brand language pulls the brand together in an engaging, visual fashion. We introduced a bold colour palette that reflects Jane’s colourful personality as well as the visually attractive meal plans she creates at events and on her online webinars. Taking influence from the bright palette of some of the key ingredients she like to use mirrors throughout the brand not just in her logo but in her very own, custom brand iconography set which will feature as a way finding system throughout her cookbook design and her website.

We created Jane’s brand language and tone of voice to reflect her offering in a clever concise way. Statements like “Health to thrive” and “I’m here for the good of your health” have spawned from the creative writing process for the brand. When married together the brand language and logo mark successfully tell her brand story.

Following the identity and language creation we implemented the branding on a number of deliverables that Jane has plans to release over the coming months as the brand is launched. From cookbook designs to event design and branded collateral for conferences we visualised how successful the identity can be across all of her needs with the colour palette and brand language constantly making an appearance, strengthening the identity as a whole.

It was a pleasure to work on the branding for Jane and we look forward to the roll out as she continues to evolve and increase her brand reach. Next phase is realising her new website and social media channels.

Web design for Belfast Music Production Academy

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The team behind Belfast Music Production Academy contacted us recently with the request to design and build their online presence. After researching the marketplace both online and locally we decided to build a content led website focusing on the courses and software Belfast Music Production Academy offer guidance on.

Courses are held in physical location here in Belfast and while optimisation for search engines is paramount the focus on converting leads into course attendees is the primary focus of the website. Working with some of Ireland’s greatest I’m most successful producers Belfast music production Academy is in an amazing position to assist has many people as possible on their journey into learning electronic music production.

Built on a content management platform, our primary aim from an administration perspective is to reduce the time required to update the website and manage the payments from course attendees.

We are extremely happy with implementation of the website and will be following this up with considered marketing campaign utilising social media channels and E-newsletters.

About Belfast Music Production Academy

BMP Academy has a single aim, to help you learn the art of electronic music production, giving you the opportunity to grow your skills alongside the best in the business. BMP brings together some of the biggest names and rising stars in the electronic music industry, creating a professional network with the skills, capabilities, contacts and resources you need to build your career in music.

Branding Solv-ed

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Solv got in touch with us with plans to undertake a brand audit. They required an update to the established identity to keep them ahead of the curve. Solv pride themselves on offering a personal service. Engineers turn up on time, wearing smart company uniform, driving one of their spotless vans and carrying company I.D. They will always carry out work to the highest standard and they are highly experienced and qualified in their respective trades. With this in mind, we were able to create an identity refresh.

We looked at a number of areas in Solv’s brand identity when performing the audit, from their logo to their tone of voice and art direction. We wanted to retain Solv’s core audience and increase brand confidence through the refresh. There are a few brand elements that we wanted to co-exist with the new direction, the Solv red and the brand personality. The red Solv vehicles are instantly recognisable across Northern Ireland, which we did not want to lose. We recognised that the red also associated with the fantastic reputation of the engineers, service and company, so it had to stay.

We began with a logo refresh, removing the word ‘group’ from the primary logo. We typeset the new logo in Vag Rounded, a similar but more sustainable typeface to use across the brand collateral. The introduction of Vag Rounded also provided a more circular and fluid logo mark. This small incremental change immediately secured an overall consistency with the brand language, brochures and vehicle graphics all now have a set typographic style. We also found a more suitable positioning for the registered trademark logo. One of the main objectives of the Solv audit was to simplify, we kept this mind-set when approaching all brand collateral.

As well as the logo design we developed a strapline to support the new brand direction. “Energy as always,” a simple & positive piece of copy that embodies the businesses brand pillars. Energy as always now features as a core part of the brand identity appearing on all printed material and vehicle graphics. The statement immediately shapes the audience perception of what Solv is all about, Energy. Whether it’s hot energy (oil and gas), cold energy (air conditioning) or green energy Solv’s team of specialists are here to help.

We created separate colour palettes and tag lines for each of the three brand pillars of Solv: Air Temperature, Heat and Environment. Feel the heat, Easy Breezy and Go Green. These digestible tag lines breakdown the services for the customers and make communications between the business and clients much more transparent. They also reinforce the already established brand personality.

The new brand elements were placed into a brand guidelines booklet for the business moving forward. It was imperative that the new brand direction was followed and some straightforward brand guidelines for staff and marketing were an essential addition to the audit.

The first piece of work in delivering the brand audit was the design of their fleet of vehicles, the red vans. We re-designed the vans in the new style, utilising the new brand guidelines, type styles and copywriting. We have also designed a number of advertising campaigns for Solv in the new brand style, which will be rolled out to the fullest in the coming months.

This was a fantastic project to be involved in and we continue to develop our working relationship with Solv. Recognising that your brand identity may need a refresh or audit is a fantastic way of keeping your brand fresh, relevant and adaptable to market trends. Get in touch with the team at Kaizen Brand Evolution if you feel your brand needs a facelift.

Branding The Future

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We were approached by Adam / Founder and Director of the Future 17 Conference to develop a new brand identity and strategy for the up and coming tech conference for teens. Future was born out of frustration at the lack of tech events aimed at teenagers and was therefore created with the sole aim of inspiring the next generation of tech leaders.

After their first event, which hosted speakers from TIME’s list of most influential teens, they are now hosting Future17, a one-day tech conference and hackathon that aims to inspire Northern Ireland’s teenagers to get more involved in the tech industry. By using a unique model and organising a tech conference around a hackathon, they ensure that attendees get the most from this experience: not only will they be able to develop their skills first-hand by ‘hacking’ together a product, but they will also receive talks from some of the leading people in the technology industry today. The ultimate aim of the event is not only to inspire the next generation of tech leaders but also to make teens see code as more than lines and squiggles on a screen and appreciate it for the magic that it is. This founder has his sights set on a number of high-profile digital superstars to lead the conference to be held in the Titanic Building, Belfast.

We set the new Future 17 tone of voice around the primary mission of ‘developing greatness’ which symbolises the over arching theme of the event, inspiring the future of tech and digital/online developers. In keeping with the younger, teen target audience we aimed to create a brand identity that communicated effectively with this age group as well as potential sponsors. Adam, the founder has already secured solid investment from the likes of Twitter, Kainos and the MCS Group, all championing this growing industry in Northern Ireland. With this in mind, we created a clever brand mark utilising the ascender in the ‘F’ device with it’s own speech bubble mark. This subtle device speaks volumes across all marketing material on and offline. It immediately visualises the essence of the talks at the conference and is easily adapted across the brand.

As well as the primary ‘F’ mark we introduced an additional, more fluid ‘F’ device built from a data map concept. This secondary ‘F’ is used across the brand in more abstract, high impact fashion. The founder of Future 17 thought that this additional device spoke volumes across marketing material and liked how versatile it became when rolled out across the conference graphics on stage and delegate material. All in all, there are two key components to this brand, the contemporary primary brand mark using the speech bubble in the F Ascender and the ‘Data Map’ F which adapts the playful, secondary colour palette.

In keeping with the contemporary brand identity, we introduced Calibre as the brand typeface. The surge of circular typefaces in 2016 has been incredible and this one in particular fitted perfectly with the Future 17 ident, clean, concise, on trend. The supporting imagery with the Future 17 brand was chosen to inspire and intrigue, high impact scenic photography of skylines and the night sky symbolising the potential of the delegates and their future impact in tech.

We are extremely pleased with the final branding of the Future 17 conference and look forward to the roll out as the build up begins for 2017. Here’s to the future of tech in Northern Ireland. If you are interested in attending the Future 17 conference please follow the link below for tickets and any further information. http://www.future17.co/

WYOBTTWD…

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Here at Kaizen Brand Evolution we are big music and fashion fans, so are eager to participate in this year’s ‘Wear Your Old Band T-Shirt To Work Day’ by Radio 6 on the 25th November.

We have our tees picked out, pressed and ready. It’s sparked a debate on our favourite albums that go with them, here’s an insight into our eclectic studio taste.

Ryan: Album – ‘Down in Albion’ by Babyshambles

For Band t-shirt day I’ll be wearing my Babyshambles – Pete Doherty, Heart Tattoo – T-shirt from their Irish Tour in April 2006 / Spring & Airbrake / Belfast

I kept this t-shirt as a memento to this epic gig! I had a pint with the band before their set, lit one of Pete Doherty’s cigarettes for him while he was on stage and appeared the next day on page 3 of the Irish News (which I still have) with Pete Doherty and Kate Moss on a feature about the band playing in Belfast.

‘Down in Albion’ is no doubt my favourite Babyshambles album. When I hear ‘Killamangiro’ it brings me back to my old student flat behind Auntie Annie’s where my mate and I started the band ‘The Couth.’ I’m still a massive fan of Babyshambles and the Libertines!

Lynsay: Album – ‘Stone Roses’ by Stone Roses
Painted by band member John Squire, the style harking to Jackson Pollock and the May 1968 riots in Paris, the chaos in the picture is balanced with the subtle placement of pattern that can be found in Squires current artworks. It’s my favourite, so much so, that my birthday present to me was the jacket. The chaos symbolises their handling of later events in their career, decorating those who had wronged them, homes and offices in paint, as “that’s the way people deal with things in Manchester”.

One of the first things a Roses fan will ask you when you meet them is, “first, or second album?”, I’m in the first camp, with ‘I Wanna be Adored’ still giving shivers.

I’m choosing the Phoenix Park T-Shirt over the classic ‘Lemon’ due to typesetting, I love green, and my friends and I got pit tickets and we were so close we could have licked him!

Shaleen: Album – ‘The Script’ by The Script
I listen to quite a lot of different music so deciding on a T-Shirt for Band T-Shirt day was quite difficult. My favourite bands would be Maroon 5 and The Script, who have the advantage as I’ve been to see them live in concert. One of my favourite songs would ‘The Man Who Can’t Be Moved’ but I generally love most of their songs. But I also love older music bands like The Beatles and Queen.

Jordan: Album – ‘Gutter Phenomenon’ by Every Time I Die
I wish I was wearing an Every Time I Die T-shirt for band T-shirt day, because that would mean the one that was ripped off my back at one of their gigs would still be intact. I loved that shirt! My favourite album of theirs is ‘Gutter Phenomenon’, because it’s just so heavy, riffs for days.

Vicki: Album – ‘Ill Communication’ by Beastie Boys
I don’t listen to that much music these days unless you count movie soundtracks. I don’t have that many band t-shirts (always too pricey for me, who loves a freebie!) In saying that, I still have and love my Calling tee. I was obsessed with them as a teen; finding out Alex Band was related to Charles Band, director of the ‘Puppet Master’ horror movie franchise, only made it worse! For the big day though, I have acquired and repurposed a Beastie Boys Tee, which you can see how here  here. I wasn’t as big a fan when I was younger, but finding myself really enjoying their music as an adult.

Lizi: Album – ‘Spice’ by Spice Girls
I haven’t really been a music lover or a groupie and loved one particular band and any band that has been cool and hip. I have always just liked any music just by the song, so picking my favourite band for band t-shirt day has been hard. I just go with the flow when it comes to music!

When I was little I always wanted to be part of the Spice Girls (I know, cool right!) Sporty Spice was my favourite and I knew every song and dance move there was!

Design of the Boojum Food Truck

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This month in Kaizen Brand Evolution we had the pleasure of working on the concepts and design of Boojum’s brand new offering –The Boojum Food Truck. The Food truck is now available for bookings across the whole of Ireland for events, festivals, weddings and pretty much any party you can think of. The food truck craze has taken America by storm and the owners of Boojum felt that Ireland was the perfect place to launch their own!

We created the campaign, additional web pages and Food truck design itself for the launch and already it has had major bookings for festivals and events across the province. ‘You see me rollin’ is the lead campaign for the food truck encompassing the rolling of the burrito and the food truck rolling down the road. The vehicle design is big, bold and extremely eye catching. The branding was also ‘rolled’ out across video, print and digital campaigns. We are, as always very proud of the work done and wish the Boojum food truck all the success it deserves.

Staying Healthy by Working Together

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Slim’s Healthy Kitchen is one of the longest standing clients on the Kaizen Brand Evolution roster. Since their fruition, we have developed the brand, from the brand identity, tone of voice and brand personality to their website, social media design, menus and interiors. Our working relationship has strengthened as the business has continued to grow significantly, with the opening of 4 new restaurants in the Belfast area and now a new venture into all of the DW Fitness Clubs. Slim’s Healthy Kitchen continues to develop and evolve their brand with us and the understanding of the brand values is what makes our business, and theirs, truly successful. When we received news that Slim’s garnered a contract with DW Fitness Clubs to open the Express model across all stores in Ireland, United Kingdom and Scotland we were absolutely thrilled for their business.

The past two weeks has seen the launch of the Slim’s Healthy Kitchen brand in DW Fitness Clubs across Northern Ireland and with our help, we have delivered the Slim’s brand experience in this new venue. Brand consistency across the DW roll out was imperative and with the design of Digital menus for screens behind the counter, interior graphics for the restaurant, promotional material such as flyers, pop-up banners and social media posts we have set the standard for future Slim’s Health Kitchen Express roll-outs.

We worked closely with the marketing and management team at Slim’s Healthy Kitchen in the design of the new menu for DW Fitness Clubs. The brief was to attract and engage gym users, parents of children using gym facilities and appeal to personal trainers alike. We designed and developed a series of high impact graphic devices and colour schemes, bringing the screen menus to life. The brand personality is highlighted in the Slim’s Express model, use of contemporary graphic design utilising standout illustrations, high impact photography and personable brand language.

Along with the new menu design, we had to adapt the Slim’s Healthy Kitchen brand to suit the interiors of each DW Fitness Club. We created a series of branded vinyl signage, which can be seen throughout each location on counter fronts, window displays and feature walls. Vinyl signage is a great way of displaying brand identities, language and offers across the store especially on this project we were able to brand the already existing unit rather quickly. In addition to the vinyl signage we created and designed a series of internal posters for the restaurant. For the poster designs, we called upon local photographer Fergus Jordan (Whitecloud Photographic) who produced a beautiful series of stylised food photography showcasing the offering at DW Fitness Clubs. The imagery reflected the brand values for the Express Store fantastically using bright, eye-catching backdrops as well as some extremely creative food styling shots. The mix of high-end photography, graphic design, typographic design and illustration really sets Slim’s Healthy Kitchen apart from their competitors. The introduction of the branding into the DW Fitness Clubs has completely transformed the way healthy food and drink is now offered in this fast paced environment.

With the success of the first four Slim’s Express restaurants opening across DW Fitness Clubs Northern Ireland in Boucher Road Belfast, Bangor, Newtownabbey and Londonderry we are excited to evolve the brand even further as Gary McIldowney prepares to take over the DW Fitness Clubs restaurant offering across the United Kingdom and Scotland. Slim’s Healthy Kitchen is the perfect example of brand evolution, highlighting our own business model that together we are creative change makers, achieving big results from small changes over time well spent with clients. The Slim’s Healthy Kitchen brand has never been as strong as the business continues to grows, so do we.

The power of Snapchat

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Snapchat is one of the most powerful ways of communicating today, short and sweet bursts of messages between you and a friend on your phone that disappear before you have a chance to react, it’s the fast-paced engagement and the exchange of information keeping us hooked. From Snapchat’s origin in quick fire picture exchange, its has significantly evolved offering text exchange between users, highly interactive and engaging video filters, story telling video diaries, worldwide event coverage and most prominent – Brand advertising. Just as the evolution of social media channels like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, Snapchat has quickly overruled as the leader in brand awareness. The user interaction analytics secure Snapchat as the most used social media platform and with this information comes a responsibility as a business to jump on board and get your brand out there.

There are many tiers of Snapchat advertising that can be easily achieved at any business level and what makes it better is Snapchat advertising is surprisingly affordable. For instance, our first use of Snapchat advertising at Kaizen brand Evolution was a simple Geofilter (interactive branding watermark over the top of the live feed camera) at Culture Night Belfast 2016. For this, we simply created a mobile sized, branded template, which could be used on the night of the event. The brilliant thing about Snapchat is that you set your location; timings and radius reach to pinpoint exactly where you want the Snapchat Geofilter to appear. What an unbelievably personal, in the moment and engaging form of advertising. It was so exciting seeing people interact and use our own Kaizen Brand Evolution filter on the night, and it appeared on your selections just after the main Snapchat filters. Following the interactions and success of the evening at Belfast Culture Night 2016, we reviewed the analytics of our simple Geofilter design and the stats were staggering. Let me put this into perspective, we set the location radius to an area of Belfast about the size of a football stadium, we had it running on Snapchat for 6hours and we told maybe 100 people who came to our stall at Belfast Culture Night 2016 about its existence and how we were testing the new medium. Our analytics report on user engagement was staggering: We had 17.3k views of our filter and 346 uses.

This only sets to prove my point on how powerful Snapchat is as a brand awareness tool. Following our first use of Snapchat we have been providing the branding service for our clients. Most notably for Boojum and their Halloween campaign. The premise of the campaign was to draw customers to each of the 3 locations of Boojum restaurants in Belfast City Centre. We created and designed 3 separate Snapchat filter designs for Boojum to use across their Great Victoria Street, Chichester Street and Botanic Avenue sites. Each design is different and alongside a Facebook and Twitter post we encourage customers to attend each Boojum location to essentially ‘catch ‘em all’ (not to paraphrase the Pokemon Go craze, but you get my point). There are two key points to this campaign, brand awareness, and brand engagement. Alongside the fantastic Halloween themed design the plans to involve their customers and locations will certainly prove successful. This forward thinking brand medium provides a new platform for brands to showcase their business in a new way, and the results speak for themselves. If we can achieve 17.3k views with hardly any marketing or build up, imagine the possibilities for your brand.

We now specialise in the design, creation, and customisation of Snapchat Geofilters and advertising. If you believe in your business and would like some design intervention online, engaging and interacting with more potential customers that ever, get in touch and we’ll be happy to set up a meeting.

Meet our evolutionaries – Shaleen

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?
In the few months that I’ve been at Kaizen Brand Evolution, I have learnt about presenting for design and how to present a client’s brief back to them and the best way to show outcomes. While working in Kaizen Brand Evolution I have learnt a lot about print and setting up different documents for print. I feel this is invaluable as it is something that will be used in all aspects of design.

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?
Helvetica, it’s my go to typeface as it is reliable, bold and can be used in all different weights for everything.

3. What do you use for motivation inside the studio? 
On a Friday here at Kaizen Brand Evolution we have a boojum, haha that keeps me motivated throughout the week. More motivation around the studio is the showcase of Kaizen Brand Evolutions work on our walls, seeing the brands that we have worked on and the creative solutions is very inspiring to see.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?
My favourite designer is Jessica Walsh, I first heard her speak at OFFSET in my first year of University and I follow her on Facebook and Instagram.

5. What are you listening to in work today?
I listen to a mixture of everything, usually a bit of Beyoncé.

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out? 
David Sherry at the Golden Thread Gallery, looks like an interesting exhibition I’m hoping to go to it this weekend.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them.
I have a dog called Buddy, he’s old and quite stupid, I live on a farm and he likes to chase cows around the wrong direction.

Meet our evolutionaries – Ryan

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry? 
Reputation is everything, building a good reputation across industry in invaluable and keeping the creative momentum simply nurtures the reputation.

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you? 
Helvetica Neue – the family. I know! But stranded on a desert Island, a neutral typeface with great clarity, no intrinsic meaning would be of great comfort to me.

3. What do you use for motivation inside the studio? 
An eclectic mix of playlists on Spotify, caffeine and surfing Behance.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently? 
I love the work coming out of Barcelona at the minute, particularly Mucho. Check ’em out.

5. What are you listening to in work today?
Nirvana – Nevermind as it’s the 25th anniversary.

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out? 
Keith Wilson: Calendar, at the Mac. Looking at the cultural status of sculpture, considering how ideas develop from studio to public presentation.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them.
I have a crazy cockapoo called Riley and a very chilled cat called Obi. They’re best friends, oddly.

Meet our evolutionaries – Lizi

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?
KBE has taught me to always push myself to do the best – What I personally think is best for the design project I am undertaking.

It has also taught me that every day, every client will be different in the design industry.

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?
Why is there a design studio on a desert island? That’s what I am wondering first of all? …But if I was to bring a typeface with me it would be Futura. I would bring this because it works well with most design projects and is very reliable. It always has a slight retro feel to it, which I love.

3. What do you use for motivation inside the studio?
When I want to get motivated in the studio, I will plug in my headphones and zone out from the rest of the world, however the odd sweet or two also helps me, my favourites is Squashies incase anyone would like to know.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?
I wouldn’t say stalk, but I love the web designer Sarah Parmenter, I love everything she creates, it is always so lovely!

5. What are you listening to in work today?
We usually have to listen to whatever Ryan puts on in the studio… Sometimes I will request the occasional Disney number but at the moment we are listening to the playlist Throwback Thursday #nostalgic.

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out?
Oliver Jeffers was in the Ulster Hall recently doing a book signing who does lovely, cute illustrations (examples Lost and Found book). Also, Belfast Design Week is coming up in November which should be interesting and filled with lots of talent and creativity.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them
As most people know I am a bit cat crazy – so of course I have a cat. She’s called Nala, she is the cutest thing ever, but also very crazy. Sometimes she will follow me to the bus on my way to work and try to get on with me (which is so embarrassing) or even just sit on top of my head just when she feels like it. I have plenty of stories about her which I talk about a lot in the office, but that’s for another time!

Meet our evolutionaries – Jordan

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?
Probably how to manage time more effectively. There are so many things going on in the studio ranging right the way through from client graphic design work, photography and our own internal brand that I always try to take a step back from the work and ensure that what is being done is in the best interests of the client, whether that is ourselves or someone else.

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?
Garamond Premiere Pro! I don’t know whether this typeface would be particularly useful on a desert island but it is definitely my favourite out there. Its classic shape works equally well in lower case for body copy or in the small caps case for detail text and sub headers. I always find that it gives a real sense of class to whatever publication or project it’s used in. I suppose in that sense if I were stranded I could imagine it was part of a big adventure book all set in the classic typeface.

3. What keeps you motivated?
The sheer range of clients that we work with means that we can experiment a lot with different styles and ways of communicating as we try to find the unique voice of a brand. I suppose this means I never really get bored as every job presents a new problem or task, which needs to be overcome in a visually pleasing way.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?
There is a company from Argentina called ‘Hola Bosque’ who are really inspiring for me because of how the use colour. Everything they do is bursting off the screen with ingenious combinations that always seem so obvious until you try to do it yourself. They are primarily an illustration studio, which means that their style is very handmade and organic, which, combined with the colours make for a brilliant result.

5. What are you listening to in work today?
I really love music, and having played in a kind of post-punk band for a few years I developed a taste for the heavier guitar riff bands like Queens of the Stone Age and Refused, but both my Dad and brother have great taste in music and send regular recommendations my way. Most recently I am going back to what my Dad played in the car when I was younger, a mix of Steely Dan and Sting. But I will listen to anything that catches my ear. One of my new favourites is ‘Dreams’ by Beck from the new FIFA 16 soundtrack.

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out?
The most recent exhibition’s that I have seen were all on Culture Night 2016. There is always a plethora of events, shoes and performances to go and see so I don’t think I could choose my favourite from the night, but if I had to say it would probably have been the people from Flamenco Fino. Brilliant dancing and music.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them.
I have a cat and a dog, Evee and Catty… Try to guess which one is which. They are both very old now but still in great shape, Evee especially. She is 15 years old and still going strong, but the best thing about her is that she is just so well behaved. Only barks when she needs let in from outside and loves a good hug. Catty is like any well respected cat would be, totally aloof until she needs something, then she’s all over you.

Meet our evolutionaries – Lynsay

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?
That it is the team that you build around you and the studio culture that you craft that can be credited for the success of a studio. It’s that, that helps cultivate creativity. Clients then feel the passion and positivity toward their projects in pitches, gaining trust in the process. At Kaizen Brand Evolution, we have an amazing team!

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?
Helvetica. Sounds standard, but I love a bit of symmetry and it would bring a bit of order to the island, born fixer!

3. What do you use for motivation inside the studio?
Diet Coke! The real thing that motivates me most is being engaged in a client meeting when I know we can really help make a difference to their business, when I can see a solution using design intervention to create change.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?
I’ve mainly been creeping on Wayne Hemmingway as I’ve been furniture shopping. Also been checking out D.A.D.D.Y. to stalk at OFFSET 2017.

5. What are you listening to in work today?
I only had a chance for a brief headphones moment today before the studio day started, it was to listen to and watch the trailer for the documentary ‘Oasis: Supersonic’. Nostalgic old footage and a very young Kate Moss. The studio today has mainly played Nirvana to mark the 25 years since Nevermind. New Warpaint album for the journey home.

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out?
The Hockney exhibition at the Mac was a must for me after seeing the documentary at QFT a couple of years back. Turned out expensive for a free exhibit as I’d been looking for a sofa at the time and it led me to buy a Hockney inspired range. It’s very true in what he says, that there are ways of looking, it’s just a question of how hard.

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them
Currently two cats named Mickey and Mallory, after M&M Knox in ‘Natural Born Killers’. More often, they get called ‘the black one’ and ‘the other one’, as they are more natural born scaredy cats. Rescued from a centre after spending their first 7 months in a cage they hadn’t been used to human contact or touch, and so are taking alot of time and patience to become domesticated. ‘The other one’ is now brave enough to be stroked, but only in the dark.

Meet our evolutionaries – Vicki

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1. What has working in Kaizen Brand Evolution taught you about the design industry?
You need to be fast, accurate and very, very good. I learn so much each day in the studio, and thankfully have a supportive and talented and patient team to teach me. 

2. Desert Island Design Studio, which typeface would you bring with you?
Century Gothic, nice, friendly and versatile font. I feel if ‘Wilson’ had been written in Century Gothic, he would have been more lively!

3. What do you use for motivation inside the studio?
Coffee, some more coffee, oh and some more coffee.

4. Any designers you have been stalking online recently?
‘I love dust’ I enjoy the biker persona they have and everything they do is loud and proud. I have a real soft spot for Chip Kidd, who doesn’t love the guy who created the Jurassic Park logo! His Ted Talks are really helpful and inspirational. I mostly stalk illustrators, mostly. Such as Steve Simpson (who I am a little obsessed with and literally stalked at OFFSET) Oliver Jeffers who just had a book signing at the Ulster Museum. Love local guys like Stephen Maurice Graham and Peter Strain. And a big fan of Chiara Bautista’s sketching. Her mix of music lyrics and emotionally charged imagery is delightful. I still check in to Deviant Art every now and again for a nosey too. 

5. What are you listening to in work today?
A mix of Eminem – ‘Rap God’ and Childish Gambino gets me motivated in the studio, and in the gym. For a calm down session I love Blood Orange – ‘Cupid Deluxe’ and anything by Devotchka. 

6. Any exhibitions in Belfast recently that are worth checking out?
David Hockney in the Mac, first time his work has been exhibited here, and marks a major turning point for art exhibits in NI. Late Night Art is always fun for free wine and a look at what’s happening each month. 

7. What’s your pet called? Tell us about them
Henry the cat. He had a bad tummy when he was young and a bad name ‘Henry’, named after some footballer. We just pronounce it differently now. He is all better and eats constantly, has a little extra flab to carry around. 

GHBranded Culture Night 2016

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Thank you to everyone who came down to GHBranded for Culture Night 2016. Super fun night branding your Social Media accounts! Everyone’s photos can be found here:

bit.ly/GHBrandedPhotos

Please tag, link and share your images, and of course use them as your profile pics!

We hope that those who came down enjoyed a taste of the expertise in design and branding offered by Kaizen Brand Evolution at our pop-up studio. The event opened up the experience of branding by offering advice on Social Media, staging a professional profile image with a choice of backgrounds to suit your personality, as well as taglines to suit your aim online. From Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn to Tinder we catered for all. Our own Snapchat Geo Filter on the night received over 17k views, not too shabby!

Our experienced designers in our Lisburn Road studio are here to help on a more permanent basis, to raise companies online profiles with strategic planning and reporting. We hope you keep us in mind for your next brand update, or when you decide to start up your own business.

To learn more about us, or view our portfolio of brands that we have created, pop over to: kaizenbrandevolution.com/portfolio

Get Instagram Branded

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On Friday 16 September Culture Night Belfast 2016, we are offering to “Get Him/Her Branded”.

Kaizen Brand Evolution raises the profiles of clients we work with and so we are setting up a mini version of our process to enhance people’s online profiles on the night. Whether it’s to document the night with friends, for dating, or to have a killer LinkedIn image for that new job. On the night we’ll be offering personal taglines, and to have your picture taken in Cotton Court Galleries in the heart of the Cathedral Quarter. So come, down, get involved, Get Him/Her Branded!

Image and brand personality has never been so pivotal for businesses in the public domain on social media. Before the event we thought we would go through a few top tips for branding your companies social media accounts.

Instagram:

Instagram is the vogue of social media, it’s all about beautiful well composed photos and videos. It’s all about aesthetics. Most prominent is food, fashion and fitness. If your company is any of these then Instagram is your main Social Media account.

Your imagery should be well composed, stick to the rule of thirds (Draw a 3×3 grid and place all object of interest onto the lines). Stick to them strictly and make sure your posts are beautiful and interesting! Filters can seem passé fast, so make sure you are up to date with new filters and try downloading apps with different filters to try out.

Like all social media accounts, being a little bit different can go a long way. Keep your hash-tags low, and put links and hash-tags in comments rather than the main body of text, as links won’t work on posts.

Keep up to date on our event on our Facebook event page: bit.ly/GHBranded

Get LinkedIn Branded

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On Friday 16 September Culture Night Belfast 2016, we are offering to “Get Him/Her Branded”.

Kaizen Brand Evolution raises the profiles of clients we work with and so we are setting up a mini version of our process to enhance people’s online profiles on the night. Whether it’s to document the night with friends, for dating, or to have a killer LinkedIn image for that new job. On the night we’ll be offering personal taglines, and to have your picture taken in Cotton Court Galleries in the heart of the Cathedral Quarter. So come, down, get involved, Get Him/Her Branded!

Image and brand personality has never been so pivotal for businesses in the public domain on social media. Before the event we thought we would go through a few top tips for branding your companies social media accounts.

LinkedIn:

Professional photos are a must for LinkedIn. But try to look a little different. Everyone in the company should have a LinkedIn profile that links through to your company’s page. It’s your professional portfolio and shows off the individual and how you all combine to make the company a powerhouse.

All the rules of perfecting a CV apply here, and tailor it to your business you’re in or after. Follow and interact with people and groups, show off your authority and skill. Constantly learn and post the certificates regularly. Lynda, Google and Hootsuite to name a few, all have links that automatically share your recent learning’s or accolades.

Keep up to date on our event on our Facebook event page: bit.ly/GHBranded

Hootsuite Conference

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This week Hootsuite hosted a rather interesting conference. There were exhibit stands, a networking get together and talks held in a conference room, the difference being it was all done online.

In the talks we listened on how to effectively measure ROI. Speakers came from Microsoft, Twitter and beyond to explain the effectiveness of social media marketing and how to judge its rate of return.

One of the surprising take aways was how social media marketing is overtaking email marketing. Obviously email marketing still has it’s place, but more and more customers are turning to Facebook, not only to gain information from business, but to really get under the skin of who the business is, the kind that was once sent out weekly in a newsletter, can now be found on a social site.

It easy to keep track of customer habits and judge what content they are enjoying, and what content they are ignoring, thanks to programs such as Hootsuite, and analytical tools. Social media as a marketing and selling tool is growing fast, and it’s worth doing right. We have two Hootsuite Graduates in the studio who are experts at reading and reacting to this data.

This was definitely one of the more interesting conferences we have attended, and found the ability to chat to like minded people from all over the world enlightening!

Power of Video

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The Power of Video Conference was held on Monday 6th June in the newly finished Waterfront Belfast and brought together some of the internet’s biggest stars, including Casey Neistat (Youtuber of the year) and our very own Cian Twomey (Facebook superstar).

The conference kicked off in typical David Meade style, with the audience being told to get up and shake out all those Monday blues. With the crowd suitably warmed up, the conference began in earnest with the first guest speakers, Casey Neistat and Matt Hackett, creators of the new content sharing app, Beme. They highlighted some interesting facts about how social media can be all consuming and that how it has become too much about gaining the adoration of people you might not even know. Promoting the sharing of genuine content for the simple reason that sharing your experience with others is more valuable than trying to gain as many “Likes as possible”. Whether this will take off for business use is another matter, as was made clear by Facebook expert Peter McNicholl.

Peter showed the value of using video on Facebook, especially when used together with the advert promotion tool. He showed a staggering difference to the interactions of people on Facebook regarding ads with, and without video, with video being the most effective.

Next we learned the true power of affiliate links on YouTube with jack-of-all-trades Zack Nelson (YouTube channel: jerryrigeverything). Affiliate links to Amazon and eBay etc are a great way of earning continuous income from your YouTube channel, especially if you use Amazon as a reseller of any of your products. They work by tracking if a customer has come from your channel and awarding you with up to 10% of the total basket price if they go on to buy! This also means that if a customer goes from YouTube to Amazon to buy one of you’re own products, you can earn 10% additional to the sale of the actual item.

We had a great time learning the ins and outs of how video can benefit our customers, and are looking forward to putting some of the techniques into practice.

SRC end of year shows

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On Tuesday night we had the honour of congratulating Sinead McGreevy on completing an HND in Graphic Design at South Regional College. Sinead had been gaining experience in our studio for over 6 months and had been an asset to the team. The end of year shows were of particular interest due to our partnership working with the Design Centre ran by Michael Toman, allowing us to share live creative projects and offering feedback to help nurture creativity. Ryan Stanfield, senior designer at Kaizen Brand Evolution officially opened the shows, a previous student of the college his foundation in design studies and subsequent career launch has forged links with the College that continues to give back. Sinead’s final major project produced a series of educational resource books, containing basic information and theory behind graphics design. The project was named ‘Basepoint’ and we feel would be great tool for young designers starting out looking for industry hints and tips to get them studio ready. Following the end of year shows, the Design Centre students were awarded 1st Place in the ‘Creative Industries’ category of the Best Awards 2016. We were glad to play a small part in it all and am sure there was much celebrating at the weekend!

Brand evolution of White’s Tavern

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The owners of the White’s Tavern came to us with an idea to brand the floor above the traditional Irish pub into a one of a kind bar/eatery. Stepping away from the long-standing tradition of White’s the new addition was to be tailored to a young professional audience, which would become a place of nostalgia and happiness with an edge.

We delivered a striking brand identity for the new venture titled ‘Vandal.’ Vandal’s identity is a nod to nineties street art and culture. Through considered graphic design, the bright colours, patterns and hand drawn typeface are tributes to the 90’s theme with a contemporary treatment. The theme continues throughout signage, menus, wall graphics and online.

Talking Brand

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Senior designer Ryan Stanfield popped into BBC Radio Ulster ‘Good Morning Ulster’ this morning to talk brand.

How it’s come about

It has been built on a solid foundation of 6 years of creativity, the studio was producing work across the island of Ireland and beyond, but was an unsung hero. We wanted to give the creative team and our clients a voice, a brand that could tell the story of who we are and what we do.

Why is what you do important

I believe it is important to effect change for the better. That is what design does. It intervenes to create a preferred state. It’s the ethos of Kaizen Brand Evolution and how we help our clients in business.

What will Kaizen Brand Evolution offer?

“In two words creative change. The ability to evolve in an ever changing and competitive marketplace. To continually engage with both internal and external audiences both visually and through brand language. We offer ideas and thinking on brand that can find output both in print and digital formats to reach the most fitting solution to the design problem. We offer a way forward.”

“We have recently converted our first floor into a studio space, allowing collaborative thinking from the designers, a break out meeting area, and reception to ask how you’d like your cuppa.”

“We are currently fortunate to work with a wide spectrum of clients, from charities to media moguls and everything in between. Our designers find themselves getting under the skin of many industries, believing that the value of design comes in knowing how businesses work in order to help find the right solutions to make creative change.”

“In terms of recruitment, we have just welcomed a new account manager, as well as someone to look after the numbers, and are in the process of sourcing a highly talented designer to join our gang.”

Why are brands important

Brand are incredibly important. Ultimately they are visual story tellers, they build consumer confidence and speak on behalf of your company. The visual language and tone of voice crafted for your brand will engage with your audience, build that audience and sell to that audience.

International Society of Typographic Designers 2016

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I travelled to DIT (Dublin Institute of Technology) Grangegorman last weekend, 5 March 2016 for the Annual ISTD (International Society of Typographic Designers) Student Assessment. Every year design students from across Ireland take part in what Erik Spiekermenn described ‘The Most rigorous and honest assessment in the world. No personal likes/dislikes can affect the outcomes.’ The students answer one of 5 ISTD briefs to which they may use a number of mediums and outcomes. When assessing we look for strong concept with comprehensive typographic exploration.

On arrival we have a chance to grab some breakfast and catch up before beginning the assessments. This year I was paired with Jamie Murphy from Salvage Press, a typographer and letterpress printer and all round great guy. The briefs are outlined below.

Project 1: A life’s work

Celebrate the life’s work of Adrian Frutiger. Create a prestigious ‘publication’ (digital/physical or both) that celebrates the life and work of Adrian Frutiger.

Project 2: The Undiscovered Country…

‘Stare death in the face’ and find out everything there is to know about it. Consider international, societal, scientific, religious, historical, statistical, cultural, literary and poetic touch-points within your research, before determining your approach.

Project 3: Visualising Music

Using Philip Glass’ opera Einstein on the Beach as your source material, you are asked to investigate different ways of making visual typographic notations in order to create a music score for this work.

Project 4: Eye Witness

Your task is to translate a written, first person account of a significant event, into a typographic experience that is designed as a site-specific installation in the gallery of your choice.

Project 5: And the winner is…

Celebrate the Nobel Prize. You may wish to propose the design for a suite of publications that highlight the various categories of awards; perhaps a prestigious publication that investigates the life and work of a selection of Nobel Laureates; or a very focused approach looking at a specific category e.g. the prize for literature.

Yet again the standard of work for Ireland is exceptional with a number of students passing the bar and one merit awarded from myself and Jamie. I thoroughly enjoy the assessments and believe that this institution greatly benefits the design community, raising standards in typographic practice across the globe.

Walking the Walk and Talking the Talk

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Valuing brand with Robert Bau

Tuesday saw the alarm clocks set for 3.30am for Glenda and Lynsay as they embarked on a road trip to Dublin to attend a workshop hosted by the Institute of Designer’s Ireland with guest speaker Robert Bau, heavy-weight strategist and thought leader. Once fuelled with coffee and pastries courtesy of Brooks Hotel, they settled down to a compelling talk on the application of business strategy to selling and quantifying the value of design. Attended by mixed disciplines from interior design, packaging and ourselves from the point of view of brand and digital, the room was able to apply the theories to their own sectors within the design industry. It is easy to fall into a assumed pattern when pitching design and overlook the analysis of brief and predicted outcomes that as designers we all do, but don’t always communicate well or quantify as a valuable outcome of the process. The knowledge we gained in invaluable, both to our own company strategy as well as how we can help our clients. I feel a studio shared learning workshop coming on!

The value of Design

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At Kaizen Brand Evolution it’s our job to communicate our skills and services eloquently to our clients. Selling a “non-tangible” product makes our jobs harder initially, but much easier upon completion when the work speaks for itself. Our Client Showcase page is our most visited web page, it shows live projects that have seen major success and growth from our approach of comprehensive brand design and strategic thinking. The Client Showcase page gives an understanding of the level of work we undertake daily for clients all over Belfast, Ireland and beyond. Graphic Design is not just about making something pretty, but rather creating elements that will enhance the business function they are working for. Great design should communicate a brand’s personality confidently and coherently. It’s much more than designing a logo. It’s about telling the brand’s story, communicating and engaging directly with your audience to raise the bottom line of their business.

Our team of experienced and award-winning designers here in Belfast can help you outsmart the competition from small changes in your brand, to complete brand & design packages. If you think your brand requires some design intervention, please get in touch on 028 9507 2007, or studio@kaizenbrandevolution.com to arrange an appointment. Click here to find out more about graphic design Belfast

Harry Pearce Pentagram

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On Dec 10 2015 the design team at Kaizen Brand Evolution took a trip to the Connor Lecture theatre at Ulster University for a talk by Pentagram’s Harry Pearce. The University of Ulster Design department really pulled it out of the bag with this booking. Pearce gave an awe-inspiring talk through his life’s work with a look through the window to how it is to be a partner in Pentagram. Pearce’s work with the Royal Academy of Arts stood out for me, his dedication to Ai Weiwei’s up and coming show really highlighted the importance of getting involved with a client and learning from them on a personal level improves the end result. A fantastic night that left the KBE team hungry for more.

Hisssssssss!!! They’re Coming!

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This week our creative team have been having some fun coming up with campaign ideas to make Sprite as synonymous to St Patrick’s day as Coke is to Christmas. After a brainstorming session that aired ideas across the team we channeled our thinking and agreed on a direction we felt carried weight. The narrative of our concept: It is written that St. Patrick banished all snakes from Ireland, chasing them into the sea after they attacked him during a 40-day fast he was undertaking on top of a hill. It has recently been proven that this legend has a twist (of lemon and Lime)… THEY’RE BACK!!! We built our campaign around the Hisssssssss!!! sound when you open a can or bottle of Sprite, that this sound could save the day by deterring the snakes back from whence they came. This is the perfect opportunity for our team to flex their creative muscles with ideas from ambient flash mob the ‘Worm’ dance offs to 3 sided ring pulls on cans to win cash prizes. Screens in the studio this week are a sea of Green!

Slim’s Healthy Kitchen Cookbook

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Kaizen Brand Evolution created the branding and designed every touch point you will see from Slims Healthy Kitchen, Slims being one of our longest standing clients, a client that is constantly growing, succeeding and as Slim grows in business as do we. When Slim came to us with the idea of designing a cookbook for the Christmas shelves in November, we were extremely excited and a little scared at the deadline! Our relationship with Slim and his team is incredibly tight and we knew, no matter what, we were going to produce the most exciting cookbook working together. Shout out to Chris Love (love PR) and Kate Magill who worked on the content and Khara Pringle for her outstanding photography. The Kaizen Brand Evolution team worked tirelessly with the Slims team in creating this wonderful healthy cookbook. The design approach was contemporary, straight forward and high impact. The imagery and text had to sit well together, be functional as people needed to follow the recipes and be visually stimulating. We succeeded in the delivery of Slims first Cookbook with plans for a follow up in 2016 which we cannot wait to get stuck into. The success of the book has increased the brand reach and interest in the healthy eating movement happening in Northern Ireland, with Slim being the captain of the ship. If you would like a copy of the book you can find it in Waterstones and most book retailers across the land but be quick they’re selling fast.

Visit slimskitchen.com for more info. Here’s to the next instalment. #choosebalance

Nurturing creativity

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Southern Regional College

We have embarked on a partnership with Southern Regional College to work with students who are undertaking the graphic design course. To help develop industry skills and prepare students for live in a studio we are submitting live briefs for participation. The students get exposure to client briefs and an opportunity to respond in real time. We critique the responses offering advice and guidance and also show the final client pitch so that they can see the level of work involved and how their response compares. For some their work will get in front of the clients noses, for others they get to see how they can tweak and improve connecting to be client ready. In addition we have offered time to assist with portfolio surgeries to help prepare students for the recruitment process, advising on how to collate their work and mock interviews. We feel strongly about giving back to colleges that have supported us and prepare students so that they are industry ready on graduation. We have been impressed by the student’s thinking and commitment to deadlines, their motto to communicate, connect and create is paying off!

Links:

https://www.facebook.com/designcentresrc/

SRCgraphicdesign

http://www.src.ac.uk

International Society of Typographic Designers

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The International Society of Typographic designer’s is the staple for excellence in worldwide typography. This year I was invited to assess the Irish submissions for the Awards. The assessments involved a full day at DIT Grangegorman with Ireland’s top design industry and education professionals. The standard of work from across the emerald isle was very impressive from the final year students with some outstanding projects that successfully made the grade for the ISTD Award. The atmosphere was inspiring and the detail in the assessment process highlights its importance in our industry. Once all of the assessing was finished we had a well-deserved meal just round the corner from DIT and wound down. It was a pleasure to be involved and I look forward to next year’s submissions.

Ciara from Snax ’n the City knows good food!

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Long term city centre client  Snax ’n the City approached us to rethink how their food-to-go bags could look. Briefing there desire to move away brown bags, we set about exploring new ways for the brand packaging to evolve. We were conscious of how city centre workers would carry the bags against dark suits so we wanted stand out with an emphasis on the fresh produce on offer. We created a range of ideas developing the colour and graphic palettes. Our thoughts were as always, to go back to the roots. We revisited the Sex and the City comparison and used this to build a range of bags that were based on the graffiti element of the famous Carrie bag. The client loved it! Through a refinement process we brought the type style and heart graphic inline with the brand, maximising the impact of the contrasting colours. As a result we have now created both bag and cup ranges, instore graphics, and are about to commence an exterior wall graphic on the building. All carrying the motto Fast, Fresh, Fabulous Food!

OFFSET 2015

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When it comes to design religion the creative community pray south, towards Offset. It is a pilgrimage for the Kaizen Brand Evolution studio every year, trumping birthdays, Christmas and St Paddys’ day for the top spot in the calendar year. This year we used the wonderful Air BNB in securing an apartment just around the corner from the Bord Gais theatre and all of the nearest eateries and watering holes. The mood is what you would expect at the likes of Glastonbury, excitement, anticipation of seeing the worlds leading creatives and the opportunity to mix with your tribe. Removing ourselves from the studio and mingling with like minded designers is a way of refilling our creative juices for the creative year ahead. We secured excellent centre seats in the main theatre for the day ahead with some brief excursions to the top floor for Q&A’s.his ritual goes on for three days and with the amount of inspiring talks you really forget that you haven’t moved in maybe 6 hours from your seat. It’s brilliant! Some of the most outstanding presentations came from Hey Studio, Annie Atkins and Andy Altmann of Why Not Associates. True inspiration that has us chomping at the bit to get back into the studio. As well as the conference we attended the Offset after party hosted by Absolut Vodka, let’s just say we enjoyed what they had to offer… a lot! Walking about the party we were brushing shoulders with the likes of Annie Atkins telling tales of clients past and future projects. What a weekend in Dublin, 2016 tickets are in our sights and we cannot wait to get back down on holy ground.