Image Credit : Nick Turner
Project Overview
Menswear brand Moss Bros is rolling out a new look across its identity and interiors – the result of a collaborative project between Pentagram partners Harry Pearce, Naresh Ramchandani and William Russell.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Brand identity and communications: Harry Pearce, partner-in-charge; Naresh Ramchandani, partner and writer; Sean Chilvers, associate and designer; Tom Edmonds, associate and writer; Ceri Tallett, writer.
Interiors: William Russell, partner-in-charge; Sarah Adams, associate; Tiziana Falchi, architect; and Anthony Richardson, designer.
Project Brief
Moss Bros. is a formal menswear company that has been making good quality clothing accessible to all Britons since 1851. Pentagram’s Harry Pearce has paid homage to this history of “suiting the nation” by creating a new visual identity for the brand.
Working alongside Pearce, Pentagram's Naresh Ramchandani and his team created a new tone of voice for the brand, reintroducing pride, expertise and charm into how the organisation communicates.
Moss Bros. stores will also be consistent with the new identity, with nine outlets already implementing Pentagram's William Russell and team’s interior designs.
Project Innovation/Need
Pearce and his team emphasised the company’s heritage by returning to the name ‘Moss Bros.’, moving away from the briefly adopted ‘Moss’. To reflect its British pedigree, Gill Sans is used in the logotype with Caslon elsewhere. The brand colour is a mix of classic suit colours that is supported by a subsidiary chalk tone inspired by tailoring patches.
As well as strengthening the Moss Bros. brand, its internal hierarchy is clarified and reinforced. Consistency between the master brand, retail brands, and own brand labels is achieved through use of the master colour scheme and a horizontal line in all logotypes, which serves as the company’s visual hallmark.
Individual colour schemes are used in tandem with the master colour scheme to give each sub-brand a distinct character. For example, Savoy Taylors Guild’s colours are based on the façade of their original store on the Strand. These details help to draw up visual personalities that are further developed through unique photography styles for each sub-brand.
Design Challenge
The challenge was developing an identity that could be applied to all aspects of the brand. The redesigned stores are the physical application of the new identity and manifesto.
The concept is currently being rolled out across the company’s store portfolio, implementing Pentagram’s multi-disciplinary creative work with Moss Bros.
Effectiveness
The new tone of voice includes an organisational manifesto, that ends with the line “suiting the nation”, expressing Moss Bros.’ range, country-wide reach and ability to suit every man and every wallet in the country. This tone is extended to the shop floor, where customers are greeted by ‘suit experts’ instead of ‘sales assistants’, creating a more proud and knowledgable persona.
In order to make Moss. Bros’ 150 stores consistent with the rebrand, Russell and his team had to create a design that would be suitable for a number of different store sizes, formats and locations, from standalone stores in London to shopping malls in the Midlands.
European oak is used in-store, creating a light and warm interior that contrasts with the typically dark colours of suits. The colours of the brand identity by Pearce have been incorporated into the material palette which has been simplified and clarified, helping to reinforce the quality and heritage of the brand.
Graphic Design - Identity and Branding
This award celebrates creative and innovative design in the traditional or digital visual representation of ideas and messages. Consideration given to clarity of communication and the matching information style to audience.
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