Brief
Canolfan Abbey Road (translation: Abbey Road Centre), a mental health centre in Bangor (Wales), approached CSAD for a rebrand that included an identity and supporting assets. The purpose behind the rebrand was to engage with a wider audience all whilst maintaining the core ethos of the charity, tackling mental health in a community environment, in a creative way. The aim was to transform the centre into a "lighter and brighter" brand.
Another goal of Canolfan Abbey Road was to have a strategy of how the updated branding could assist in securing new revenue streams, in order to gain more funding for a smaller charity.
The Approach
As a collective (myself, Conor, Hannah, and Harry) decided that what Canolfan Abbey Road needed was not a complete overhaul, but a refresh. Our goal was to take the values of the centre and the brand they have already established and use that as a foundation for their brand update.
What we proposed was an evolution, not a revolution.
We began with the analysis of their current logo, which communicates a lot of ideas, and used this as a springboard to develop an agile, functional, and adaptable identity which we could then blossom into further assets.
Disclaimer: As this was a group project, I will include mainly the work I had direct influence in, as roles did get delegated.
Credit will be provided to the respective members of the team if applicable.
Functionality
In addition to evolving the 'old' logo, we aimed to ensure that the logo was functional and instantly recognisable. These features mean that the logo remains legible on many mediums whether in digital or print. This will also allow Canolfan Abbey Road to gain and retain attention in the community, especially as it is easily reproducible from hand quickly.
Below you can see that the logo not only works in colour, but in black and white, as well as it is scalable and can be seen even through a blur (as if the resolution is low or a visitor/viewer is hard of seeing).
Colours
The colours have been selected and named carefully in order to convey the values of the centre as well as for practical reason, for example, contrast and legibility.
Colours found and chosen by committee.
Typeface
The typeface was taken into extremely careful consideration. We believe that SK Seren allows for a playful and creative form and feel, which represents the 'artsy' nature of the centre, without compromising the legibility. Almost like a hybrid between both a serif and sans-serif it offers exactly what is asked for in a spirited yet functional typeface.
Another compelling reason behind this selection was the name. "Seren" being Welsh for "star" which links nicely to the idea previously mentioned of a "brighter future" which is conveyed through our biggest star - the Sun.
Engagement
Encouraging engagement between the centre itself and the visitors is vital to grow the number of visitors the centre gets. People with mental health issues want to feel included, safe, and engaged with, especially having made the effort to attend the centre. The engagement not only makes it more likely for return visitors, but also a spread of awareness organically through word of mouth.
The engagement could consequently be advantages in the wider branding assets, displaying the involvement of the visitors at the forefront. This yet again emphasis the visitor-centric approach we have decided to take Canolfan Abbey Road. As mentioned, the logo is easy to reproduce so that any visitor can explore their creative side to help develop a string of hand-made logos for the logo hierarchy which can be included on less 'corporate' assets.
Tagline
The tagline was devised to provide and enforce a strong message about the aspirations of Canolfan Abbey Road as charity, a caregiving centre, and a creative space.
As an agile brand, it is important that the tagline not only relates alludes the ethos, but also mirrors that which is projected in the logo, whilst maintaining the sense of community and togetherness.
Digital Presence
With the goal of expanding the demographic of visitors, social media plays a vital role in this area of growth. Whilst their Facebook is their current primary platform, exploring the realms of Instagram and Twitter will likely attract a younger and potential more diverse visitors.
Instagram template designs and mockups created by Harry. Some of the work in the containers were created by myself.
Facebook template designs and mockups created by Harry. Some of the work in the containers as well as the cover photo layout were created by myself.
Posters
Along with a digital presence, print based marketing will be another area to target, especially within the immediate local community of the centre. The posters themselves are structured in a functional manner, using a grid based from the shapes found within the logos.
The prints found in the second figure illustrate again how visitor engagement could be capitalised on by selling prints which would also help open another income stream.
Signage
The entrance and external signage has been improved to show the brighter side to Canolfan Abbey Road, whilst also being welcoming and conveying creativity.
Wearables
These wearables have been designed with interaction and income streams in mind. The idea is that these garments/products could be created in workshops by visitors and sold for profit. This also means that the products appear to be individualistic and each of them unique.
Bees
Canolfan Abbey Road are planning on keeping bees at the centre. This has been identified as a strong revenue avenue to explore. We wanted to go beyond the obvious of just honey, and incorporate the idea of workshops (discussed above) into the equation. The workshop could include making candles, reusable food wraps. When a product is sold, the idea of a "loyalty" card could be introduced. From a more corporate standpoint, envelopes could be sealed with beeswax.
