RETAIL

Hudson's Bay The Netherlands

Brand & Promotional Signage

A diverse sense of unity

The development of a visual design system for brand and promotional signage was a special part of the signage and way-finding project . The goal was to obtain a strong sense of unity in the way all different brands and in-store promotions are presented. We were asked to develop the system's concept, guidelines and templates. On top of that, we were asked to design the look and feel of each individual in-store promotion campaign. This was based on initial work executed by TBWA Amsterdam.

The brand signage elements are strongly linked to the overall signage and way-finding, which is reflected in the use of the same materials, dimensions and layout regulations. In order to ensure the overall visual unity even more we came up with a restricted amount of sizing options, which are also all based on A-sizes. On top of that we created a grid system which forced the various brand logos and carriers all into one concept of formatting.

When it comes to in-store promotions, Hudson's Bay features a large variety. Some - for example Sales and Black Friday - are only visible in the stores once or twice a year. Weekly or daily promotional offers - are almost always present. Finally, there are one-offs such as the (pre-)opening campaign and campaigns for Christmas or other special occasions.

The actual design challenge was to creatie something visually appealing and compelling, and - at the same time - preventing the different campaigns from creating a visual chaos. We therefore developed a small color palette of colors that functions as one color family, and developed a strict system of type and grid. These were then applied to a range of promotional carriers, from posters and labels visual elements that could be used on Hudson’s Bay’s website and social media channels.

Overview of design building blocks and signage templates