CASE STUDY
Reynolda House Museum of American Art — Rebrand
SERVICES
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Consulting
Strategy
Positioning
Identity
Messaging
Collateral
Packaging
Signage
Illustration
ROLE
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Creative Direction
Photography
A place that invites people to come together needs to ask the same of its branding. The Reynolda Historic District in Winston-Salem is a sprawling former country estate home to plethora of educational, cultural and community offerings, and just as many brand identities. With its centenary coming up, Reynolda needed a centennial brand – one that could seamlessly segue into a newly unified brand identity for the entire estate.
Before we could begin work on an identity we needed a strategy. This meant hearing the voices of key constituents, employees, visitors and non-visitors. Through these conversations and deep research we learned that the estate’s branding was disjointed, and that there were many other elements and experiences of the estate being underserved by the current identity.
These insights helped us develop a strategy that would unify the different divisions of the estate under a single, inclusive brand identity. This identity had to align with the strategy while also speaking to the target audience in a way that was authentic to the voice and personality of Reynolda.
“This identity had to align with the strategy while also speaking to the target audience in a way that was authentic to the voice and personality of Reynolda.”
We knew that the key to the larger, estate-wide branding identity was understanding the visitor journey and developing wayfinding elements and touchpoints that would both direct and augment that experience. The resulting Reynolda umbrella brand extended the centennial identity, incorporating line drawings and typography redolent of the estate’s own architectural moments and rich history of cultural stewardship.
To ensure the new, estate-wide brand would be executed correctly, we established a series of brand standards that themselves were in line with the new brand. Workshopped with an internal team, these visual templates and layouts and storytelling elements not only provided guardrails for remaining on brand, but provided a flexible entry into the brand for staff creating marketing materials in future.
The new estate-wide identity dramatically simplified outreach, facilitating consistent messaging and experiences across all of Reynolda’s communications channels and no matter where a guest is on site.
“From the first conversation i had, I was impressed with their fresh perspective and big ideas. Their work for Reynolda House Museum of American Art has been exceptional and I have great trust in their design instinct. I enjoy working with the entire team.”
_CLIENT TESTIMONIAL
— SARAH SMITH / DIRECTOR OF EXTERNAL RELATIONS / REYNOLDA HOUSE MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART