Every city has its go-to ice cream and burger joint from the mid-century. In Boise, Idaho Fanci Freez has a long standing reputation for their delicious burgers and unique milkshakes. When we connected with the owners to strategically rebrand the iconic restaurant we knew the goal would be to preserve their iconic image and rich history. Follow along to see how we brought character and meaning to the visual identity.
Through our discovery process with the client we researched what were the most recognizable aspects of their brand. Customers knew Fanci Freez for their old school menu items, a nostalgic diner building, their ribbon logo and a vibrant pink brand color. Their tremendous reputation meant we didn't need a drastic change to their brand, but rather just an update.
In planning for their future, we knew they have plans to expand and also add retail products. Modernizing their logo to keep the ribbon and the inviting feel was a must. Dropping the generic-looking ice cream cone allowed for more flexibility in how and where the new logo is used. The new lettering in the ribbon is easier to read from a distance but is still friendly and inviting.
We interviewed several firms to come up with a brand refresh at Fanci Freez. We selected Avidity Creative because they communicated very well that they understood our goals (including hitting our timeframe). They came up with a comprehensive plan and checked in with us to refine things along the way.
A brand is not just its logo. We developed a series of graphic elements and patterns that built more flexibility into the brand. Throughout the entire brand we kept in mind that we were trying to reflect a new direction while also recognizing the history of the restaurant. You'll see visual references from the 1950's and 60's done in a more contemporary style.
As an emerging brand, especially with their new CPG product line of soft serve milkshakes, we knew their marketing would have a lot of hands on it. So building a set of digital assets that is easy to use was very important. In the next section you'll see how we put guard rails in place for all of these different vendors.
The packaging and logo they created is literally award-winning! It is eye-catching and innovative. We also now have a great refresh to our logo that is still very recognizable but up-to-date at the same time. They even came up with a cool shirt design that is perfect for our retro concept. We love what they’ve done!
As with any growing brand, the bigger it gets, the more people will be involved with carrying out the brand message. A key piece to making sure everyone understands the brands goals, visuals, and tone of voice is developing a well thought out brand guide.
Most standard brand guides include things like logo options, typography and colors. With Fanci Freez we went a step further and built out directions for using things like patterns and retro graphics. We even included direction for photography styling. Below are a few pages, but to see the full brand guide click here.
