Market research

🌀

concept development

🌀

identity development

🌀

CREATIVE DIRECTION

🌀

Market research 🌀 concept development 🌀 identity development 🌀 CREATIVE DIRECTION 🌀

THE CLIENT:

Vocation Brewery

Vocation Brewery was opening a new taproom venue in their key heartland of Halifax and wanted a food offering which was operated in-house, under a proprietary brand name.

The food would be New York-style pizza, and its USP was its size - giant 24” pizzas available by the slice or by the pie. We were given free reign on the brand identity - but 6 weeks to get it done.

THE BRIEF:

THE DELIVERABLES:

We produced market research to help identify the Vocation & Co Halifax customer - a 6 Music-listening, road-cycling, Piece Hall gig-going Dad of 2 aged 30-50 - and developed three initial identities - each leaning into a different aspect and aesthetic of New York culture.

We briefed @justluckand13 on creating visual identities for all three: the classic-feeling Greased Wheel with nods to Scorcese’s New York; the modern, bold, graphic-led Hot Takes; and the eventual route, Wonder Wheel.

The name emphasised the “giant pizza” USP with a reference the iconic Coney Island landmark, and the visual identity took an illustrative route: evoking the rough and ready New York of The Warriors, early hip-hop, Keith Haring, hopping subway turnstyles, and dusk-til-dawn slice bars. Pop culture references which would resonate with our target customer.

The identity was refined and developed across a suite of brand assets and touchpoints: wordmarks, logomarks, tone of voice, slogans, product naming and descriptions, signage, merchandise - right down to small details like the type of wheatpaste used to apply subway-style posters as restaurant decor, and ensuring the paper plates used as serveware felt authentic.

Wonder Wheel was handed over to the operator, over-fresh and ready to launch on day one of Vocation & Co Halifax, as a coherent and immersive brand world.