A cafe/gallery/live space rebrand

Oli’s Coffee House opened in Bray Co. Wicklow in Ireland in 2011 by Oliver Markus. An enthusiastic first-time cafe venture with an original USP of supplying organic coffee and other produce, it was to be the only store like it in the area. A cafe he hoped, that would break the mould of the average sleepy Bray cafe, an alternative space with an easy going atmosphere full of personality. Sadly though, it seemed there was little interest amongst customers in the area for ethically grown produce, and combine this with an economy in the doldrums and an off the high street location and you can expect a rough start. Then, something great happened. As the cafe scraped by financially, Oliver began to try out occasional live music performances on weekend evenings. It was a moderate success and soon lead him to consider other means to attract people and raise awareness. Could the cafe be more than a cafe? It definitely seemed like it. Occasional art and photography exhibits followed, keeping the cafe afloat and bringing new life and personality to the place. Oli’s certainly looked fun, easy going and alternative during the events, but as soon as the noise died down, the pictures were sold and the crowds dispersed, so did the charm, the focus and the fun...

Overview

Initial research into what the cafe was about, what it was becoming and what the customers thought about it gave that precious information that essentially became the foundations for the new brand. Something mentioned early on became the catalyst for the new direction: Oliver voiced his desire for the cafe to be of place of social congregation. “I want this place to be a social gathering point, a third place”. Traditionally a third place is somewhere that is not your home, it’s not the work-place but a place where one can go to relax and congregate with likeminded others. While only mentioned in passing, it became clear that this was a solid starting point in realising what the cafe was all about.

A ‘third place’

I want this place to be a social gathering point, a ‘third place’

The notion of a third place was nice, but Shortly it became apparent that 3 actually represented other aspects of the cafe too. There was the 3 functions the cafe had now acquired; a cafe, an exhibit space and a live music room, and as it happened the building had an address at number 3 as well. Renaming Oli’s as Third Place now seemed fitting. The cafe was evolving, and so was it’s unique selling point. Oli’s cafe was no longer simply a place that just sold organic produce to whoever might wander by as it’s pale organic-inspired logo suggested, it was now a multifunctional hive of activity and the new brand needed to show that.

3 is the magic number

Based on Oli’s requirements the new look and feel needed to be fun, friendly and reflect the fact that the cafe now tripled up as an exhibit and live space (the reason for their slowly growing success) A master logo was created to reflect this. It plays on the notion of stacking the 3 functions of the cafe in an almost precarious manner suggesting that the place is fun, laid back and friendly. In an abstract way this juxta position can also symbolise the mix of people, music and art that fills the space.

A new beginning

A logo alone can not carry a personality. A brand needs a number of things to communicate clearly. One of which is a typeface. Choosing an appropriate typeface was crucial in putting across that fun, laid-back yet credible look and feel needed to represent Third Place properly. Archer by Hoefler & Frere-Jones was chosen for it’s ability to hit just the right notes of forthrightness, credibility, and charm. The functionality Archer had was precisely what Third Place needed. The font comes in a modest range of weights including hairline thin. This range of weights would become crucial in creating the visual language that would stem from the logotype.

Typeface

Third Place

Third Place

Third Place

Third Place

Third Place

Third Place

Third Place

The new activity in Oli’s was a success. It firstly brought in cash that helped pay the bills but it also evoked a sense of community. Using clusters of the typography from the logotype a fun visual language was born that simply showed this congregation of different people in a single space, embroiled in the hustle and bustle. This language was then applied in different ways to the interior, packaging, and the website. It was important to give a recognisable overall feel to the brand’s applications but equally important to keep it fresh by using it in different ways. The cafe now had 3 main activities: eating, looking and listening and the ‘congrigating type’ spoke about these things through appropriately selected words.

A visual language

Sh

hH

S

Above: ‘Congrigating’ type-clusters. I’ve got something to say: Houmous!

E

e a

T

Visual language in this case is as much of a mood as direct communication, if it’s read – great. If not? No problem. This page:

“Listen” That page: “Eat”.

The visual language lives on most of the brand applications, this time we see a gradual zoom in on the number three.

It’s not home,It’s not the work place,It’s that 3rd Place.

3rd Place3 Albert Walk, Bray01 281 37823rdplace.ie

It’s not home,It’s not the work place,It’s that 3rd Place.

3rd Place3 Albert Walk, Bray01 281 37823rdplace.ie

It’s not home,It’s not the work place,It’s that 3rd Place.

3rd Place3 Albert Walk, Bray01 281 37823rdplace.ie

It’s not home,It’s not the work place,It’s that 3rd Place.

3rd Place3 Albert Walk, Bray01 281 37823rdplace.ie

Packaging

It’s hard to convince people that they’re buying into something that just comes in a cup or glass. Apart from simply stating that the produce was organic there was nothing else to help convince people to choose it over the regular stuff. Sheep keep away pests and animals and also fertalise the soil in most organic vineyards as a substitute for pesticides, herbisides and fertilizer sprays. The notion of ‘giving a sheep a living’ became the basis for playfully convincing people to choose the organic wine in stock. Busy evenings in 3rd Place would see those drinking organic wine sporting a special pin badge showing their dedication to their furry friends. In addition to the ‘congregating type’, this imagery was introduced to support this fun approach to selling the organic wine and coffee on sale. Being playful In the approach was much more fun and engaging.

Lighten-up organic!

Above: A look at the various rubbishy sprays put all over coffee beans to help them grow. The point? That they’re completely unknown to us. Opposite page: Ceasar says ‘chill’…

The environment of 3rd Place was of great importance. The feeling of hustle & bustle, community and fun had to show through the graphics applied to the walls as well as the tongue in cheek tone of the organic imagery. Simple vinyl ‘congrigating’ clusters of type were put inside and out as well as the cafe’s new slogan on the front window: ‘It’s not home, It’s not the work place, It’s that 3rd Place.’

Interiors

If 3rd place existed in real life it needed to exist online too. A simple paired-down website was created to show a number of things: What the cafe was about, what they have to offer and what events were on. The visual language from the brand passed across to the online platform effortlessly, this time instead of being directly applied to the site it takes a backseat shown only through existing applications in the background letting the information on the site take centre stage.

A simple web-presence

Thank you Oli for your blessing on the project, you’re helpful info and time and enthusiasm. Thanks to all the customers who gave their thoughts, opinions and observations about the cafe and being honest and straight-forward. Thanks to all the London cafe’s who spoke to me about their experiences and decision-making, and for letting me sit around writing notes and ‘researching’ (cake-eating). Thank you.

Thank you