The Early Chapter 品牌形象设计 by Allan Toh is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2022 A' Design Award 铁奖 in 平面、插画与视觉传达设计 Competition Category.

铁平面· 2022

The Early Chapter 品牌形象设计

by Allan Toh

Client: Allan Toh

A' Design Award 铁奖 Winner in 平面 Category

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Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #128237

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Colors

The Design

About The Early Chapter 品牌形象设计

The Early Chapter 是为新加坡一家幼儿活动会所打造的品牌形象。该会所通过沉浸式游戏帮助儿童培养对华文的兴趣。标志由红、黄、蓝三色的简单几何形状构成,层层叠加,形似一间小屋。小屋的造型象征着会所致力于营造的社群氛围。形状之间的负空间构成了代表华文的汉字"文",凸显出对中文语言的专注。半轮旭日则寓意为幼儿营造积极向上的成长环境。

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award 铁奖

The Early Chapter 品牌形象设计是 A' Design Award 铁奖得主，这是授予满足人们对设计精良的创作所期待的专业与工业要求的优良设计的声望认可。铁奖得主展现出其创作者的高超技艺、高度专业化、专家级的理解力和创造能力。预计The Early Chapter 品牌形象设计将成为一件备受推崇、令人钦佩且被珍爱的创作，既实用又创新。这件赢得 A' Design Award 铁奖的设计整合了行业最佳实践，并拥有与专业知识和才华相结合的称职技术特性。The Early Chapter 品牌形象设计因其严谨而受到尊重，旨在提供有助于让世界变得更美好的生活品质改善。

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: The Early Chapter is an early childhood activities clubhouse for children to develop an interest in Mandarin through immersive play. The logo consists of simple shapes in primary colors- red, yellow, and blue, stacked to look like a hut or small house. This represents the community that the brand tries to create. The negative space between the shapes forms the Chinese written character for Mandarin, which represents the clubhouse's emphasis on the Chinese language (Mandarin). The half-sun symbolizes the uplifting environment The Early Chapter wishes to create for the rising young stars of tomorrow.
Dimensions & Packaging: The minimum height of the logo for web is 45px. The minimum height for print is 10mm.
Tags: The Early Chapter, Early Childhood Clubhouse, Children, Mandarin, Chinese, Activities, Fun, Playful.
Production Technology: I started out by understanding from the client's perspective what they wanted, and went on to use mind maps to break down the meanings and associations for the words, "Early", and 'Clubhouse". I gathered that 'sun' is a good representation of 'early' and that a 'hut' is a nice association for a clubhouse.
Design Challenge: The challenge was to create a suitable colour palette as I was working with the 3 primary colours. I also have to be mindful in creating a brand identity that feels trustworthy yet uplifting and fun. I have to find a balance point such that the outcome does not appear boring while attempting to be trustworthy, and also not being too childish and unreliable while trying to be fun and uplifting. I hope I managed to strike a good balance here.
Research: Desk research, market study and brand positioning analysis were conducted to understand the context, target market and competition. Stakeholder interviews, target market study and competitive analysis were carried out. The research indicated that children in the target age group(1.5-6 years) engage in constructive play, and decipher primary colours such as red, yellow and blue better. The findings gave a clear design direction and contributed to an outcome that is more relevant and appropriate.
Inspiration: Inspired by the idea of a "close-knit and fun community for children", I wanted to create a logo that looks like a colourful hut that feels uplifting, fun and safe. The colours are carefully selected- red for attention, yellow for fun and blue for safety. They also happen to be the primary colours which children can easily identify with.
Project Duration: The project started in late April 2021 in Singapore, and finished in late June 2021. The clubhouse is has completed renovations and is open to the public since November 2021. The logo and brand materials are used in stores and for marketing purposes.
Operation Flow: Due to the use of three primary colour hues, it is ideal the logo appears on a White or Floral White (beige-looking) background. Floral white provides a warm support for the three colours so the logo stands out well.
Patents: Copyrights belong to Allan Toh Design Studio, 2021.