Creature - Same Same but Different

Retailers have to put their best foot forward and provide customers with a relevant and engaging experience.

Arty Bees, in business for over 20 years, is now an icon in Wellington. A pre-loved bookstore, they cater for a wide range of literary tastes - from fine arts to sci-fi.

We started working with Arty Bees over six years ago, starting with a brand refresh. The original visual identity was dusted off, redrawn and energised. We interviewed staff and completed a brand audit - the resulting report highlighted areas for change. Namely the transition from two retail stores to one.

Creature continues to work with the team designing collateral and promotional material that has made Arty Bees the Capital Times 'Peoples Choice' for a pre-loved read 2010.

Booksellers New Zealand Limited wanted to reinvigorate and maximise its organisational relevance and promote their services to members: ulitimately helping member retailers sell more books.

The brand overhaul included refinement of the existing core mark and creation of a standardised framework for design of marketing collateral.

Booksellers’ revitalised brand helps place information at the fingertips of members and reinforces its trusted leadership role for members and book lovers alike.

When Chorus arrived at Creature’s door in 2007, they were pretty much a stranger to most New Zealanders. Sure, they had a core staff of 200 working day and night to keep the country’s telecommunications network seamlessly connected, but apart from a logo and the beginnings of a heroic story they remained a mystery to millions of New Zealanders who benefit every moment from their extraordinary high-tech and modern service.

Creature established the position of Nation Building and quickly set about creating a brand that reflected this. Helping Chorus build a relationship based on trust and transparency with the public, and third party suppliers.

This approach involved turning a potentially complex technological story into a personal one. A large graphic landscape was designed as the brand’s touchstone – showing people at a glance how the Chorus telecommunications network benefits New Zealanders by keeping 'us' connected. A toolbox of design elements was also created - allowing for consistent and economic telling of the emerging brand story.

Keep safe your precious technology gadgets – that’s the idea behind the start-up, Boutique Geek.

The 'Geeks' have designed a range of 'protection-wear' that reflects the personal style of its customers and provides real protection to a variety of gadgets.

The core mark is typographic, playing on the 'b' and 'g' letter forms, to create a unique reference to gadgets for both boys and girls. An ordered circle of cables and ear phones complete the identity.

While women were our initial target, Creature broadened the product ranges appeal by designing a special gift-like packaging solution that was attractive to both male and female customers.

Create a brand identity for an existing business with a new owner. That was the brief.

Cannibal is a specialist joinery company that creates highly crafted wood based products for museum exhibitions, visitor experiences and commercial and domestic interiors. Tools of the trade lay at the heart of how Cannibal delivers. And - as the saying goes "a carpenter is only as good as his tools".

This formed the basis of Cannibal's visual signature and brand strategy. A camouflage motif is made from traditional tools of the trade, juxtaposed with the textures of timber.

Re-name and strike out from the competition with a strong new brand. A brand that exudes modernity and an urban attitude. That's what we did.

A re-brand can energise and motivate an organisation. It provides the opportunity to express a new focus and direction.

The Deaf Association of New Zealand, renamed Deaf Aotearoa by Creature was a visually focused client who gave us creative freedom with their new brand.

The only mandatory element – to use a butterfly in some way. Not only does the butterfly illustrate freedom, grace and independence – it is also deaf – making it a perfect icon for the Deaf community.

This energetic new brand identity more accurately represents this progressive and dedicated New Zealand organisation.

Since 2005 Deaf Aotearoa New Zealand have campaigned to raise awareness of New Zealand’s third official language, New Zealand Sign Language. Each year they compete to be seen and heard in a crowded cause based environment.

Establishing the butterfly motif as a metaphor and unifying image to flag the campaign - butterflies are themselves deaf - Creature designed a range of collateral items that worked together to promote the week.

Hero campaign imagery was used across all promotional collateral: website, billboards, street posters, t-shirts, advertisements and brochures.

Organised chaos - that's how some describe Fringe. The festival, held over three weeks starting in February, is New Zealand's only open access community based arts festival. For over 20 years it has been an iconic part of Wellington events calendar.

This year we stamped Fringe into a layer of black textured wallpaper, the wordmark appears and reveals deeper layers that curl back. Black and yellow are the colours of Wellington, where the Festival is held. Cyan and magenta reference the diversity , brightness and rawness of the Festival. Overall aesthetic is celebratory and revealing.

Along with street level posters and a printed programme a website opens the door for all: the site attracts a huge audience and details over 80 shows.

Creature continues to be a proud sponsor of the New Zealand FRINGE Festival. 2010 marked our seventh year of contributing design services to the Fringe Arts Trust.

The New Zealand Post Book Awards promote excellence in, and provide recognition for, the very best books published annually in New Zealand.

Point of sale material including category posters,  a readers choice mini book, postcards, finalist banners and a winners pack were produced.

A series of distinctive interior spaces where readers indulge and enjoy their favorite read provide context for category finalists.

The material is displayed at street level and in-store.

Helping promote an active and balanced life, as part of an employment strategy, gave scope for energetic graphics and wordplay.

Telecom has had a great response from their employees over the past 3 years, providing branded sport t-shirts and cycle shirts for their various team events.

Iconic New Zealand design, bold playful statements and a vibrant colour palette keep the shirts fun and fresh for all ages.

The extended brand translates onto posters, signage, stickers and intranet alerts.

The Screen Production and Development Association of New Zealand (SPADA) represents the interests of producers and production companies on all issues affecting the commercial and creative aspects of independent screen production in New Zealand.

SPADA's annual conference is a gathering of local practitioners and international speakers. It is a chance to fuel minds, share war stories and to plot a course for the year ahead.

'Get Ahead' became our cue for developing the look and feel for conference 2009.  Literally, an exploding head represents the packed agenda, a fresh approach, new ideas and new ways of doing things.

This was not going to be your standard conference.

Keeping one strong voice when telling a story from multiple organisations can be a design challenge.

Collaborating with Angus and Associates, Creature developed the New Zealand Tourism Strategy document for the Ministry of Tourism, Tourism New Zealand and the Tourism Industry Association.

The strategy presented the Government and Industry vision for Tourism in New Zealand until 2015.

New Zealand scenes illustrated in a colours of New Zealand palette give a less predicatable approach for an industry that usually communicates visually via photography.

A Wellington based, start-up, fashion label needed a brand to promote its new business and market their flagship product. Gatoure.

Gatoure is a fashion accessory. Coming in a variety of fabrics and textures it turns an ordinary shoe into glamour footware.

Creature designed a distinctively 'handmade' visual signature - referencing parlor high-jinx of decadent times-gone-by. A tone of voice reflects a 'Victorian England' meets 'Asian street' quality.

This was then extended to packaging via hand-pulled, screen-printed boxes. Beautifully finished with satin buckle and bow.

Quirky and brave - like those who wear this stylish product.

The Sensitive Skin Co. is an organic range of skin care products.

Creature was tasked with redesigning the packaging solution and website to promote the gentle skin friendly benefits of the range.

Primarily used when bathing, our approach was to create a water nymph character, herself bathing, combined with a calming colour palette. The logo mark uses organic typography and references Victorian signage.

The illustration was a key component of the design vocabulary. To create it we commissioned internationally renowned illustrator, James Jean.

The result - an attractive range of simply packaged products and increased sales through both retail and online channels.

Faye Whittaker has spent her life learning; about herself, her body and her diet.

Being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis has taken her on a journey of perfecting these learnings, documenting them and putting them into practice.

She has written three books that discuss the illness, provide recipes and remedies along with indepth knowledge of the healing properties of food.

Not able to find a New Zealand publisher for such a niche series of books, Faye bravely published them herself.

Often not well enough to travel the country and market them, she needed a website that could capture her approach to life and help her sell her books.

The site is an information portal, taking visitors onto PublishMe. A company, based in New Plymouth, that handles the financial transactions along with packaging and postage.

Warm, earthy with a spiritual base... a place for healing... that is dancinglion.co.nz