Vineyard Logo Update

After an in-class critique on wednesday, I agreed that it would be a good idea to step back from this corkscrew idea for a respite. It's fresh, unique, and well...pretty cool. However, I am having a dastardly time incorporating the type with the corkscrew illustration. It feels like two type faces competing against each other. One idea was to give the impression of a handle attached to the corkscrew (see the next 3 below) hoping this might give it a sense of unity and spacial organization.

After working with the corkscrew idea ad nauseum, I decided to clear my head and try another direction all together (images 4&5).

I am pleased with where they are heading. They feel elegant, classy, sophisticated, modern, upscale, refined, and uncomplicated. Bottles are carefully set out in a subtle V pattern. The bottle necks give a subconscious impression of a city skyline. The rich plum color speaks of a fine red wine. Atmospheric perspective provides a sense of depth, thus, further alluding to the V shape. The strong, almost figurative, verticality of the bottles is balanced by the horizontal type. Generous tracking lends an open, spacious, airy quality like a vineyard.

VWM Vector Graphics

Logo Typeface Study

Pencil Sketches

Rebranding Logo Development Project Brief

Company profile
The Vineyard Wine Market (VWM) is a quality boutique wine store and Tasting Room (V2 Wine Room) that offers a distinct selection of fine wines at commercial pricing. The V2 Wine Room offers weekly tastings of unique wines from around the world. VWM is passionate about the art of winemaking and its consumption offering customers a truly memorable wine experience. Opened in Februrary 2006 by Anthony and Joseph Alvarez, VWM is committed to educating customers about wine while giving them the best taylor-made service possible.

Market Position/Competition
VWM is a small boutique wine shop that is able to compete with grocery store chains, liquor stores, and other wine specialty stores by offering customers superior service and education in a beautiful, unique, "wine country" setting. Because VWM is located in a transient part of Atlanta, brand recognition and advertising can be difficult. Word-of-mouth and email are the best ways to reach new customers.

Target Market/Demographics
75% female, although large buyers tend to be male.
30 -55 age range.
Moderate income with some discretionary income.
Most customers live within 1-5 miles of the store.
Upwards of 40% of customers are educated about wine. This figure is somewhat substantial when considering people who purchase wine from grocery or liquor stores.

Communication Objectives
VWM requires a design that truly speaks to the values and desires of a trend-driven, sophisticated clientel. The objective is to design a logo that captures the essence of the unique "wine experience" in order to increase market appeal and set VWM apart from its competitors. The logo should communicate two seemingly contradictory sentiments; the traditional, time-honored art of fine wine and the approachable, unarrogant pleasure of contemporary wine consumption.

Wine Label Inspiration

These wine labels seem to encapsulate the ideas I am searching for: the classic, elegant (Quintessa) sophistication associated with fine wines as well as the simple, unpretentious, even fun (Educated Guess), sentiments of the wine experience.

The "wine experience" is where the classical and traditional meet the contemporary and accessible.

Some Logos for Inspiration

The following logos were selected by my client, The Vineyard Wine Market, for potential inspiration. These are logos that Anthony felt captured some of the feel and attributes of his store (minus the turtle).

Anthony's preference appears to be classic design and traditional serif typefaces together with a clear, elegant, uncomplicated approach.

The Vineyard Wine Market (Atlanta, GA)

The Mission of the Vineyard Wine Market is to provide quality, boutique wines at fair prices while educating customers about the art of winemaking, and sharing a truly great wine experience.

Buzzwords: Traditional, Specialized, Quaint, Distinguished, Unpretentious.

The Beautiful interior of The Vineyard Wine Market and The V2 Wine Room:

Rebranding: Sizing Up the Competition

The business I have chosen for the rebranding project(s) is The Vineyard Wine Market. Here are some logos from the competition:

Interesting type choice. I'm not sure about the "e"s. The descender of the "y" is perhaps intended to be a wine glass stem and base.

It took me a minute to realize those were corks flanking the black wine market banner. This looks like a typical, owner-or-family-member-did-it-and-used-clip-art logo.

Not a great logo. The obvious bunch of grapes, bad drop shadow, unappealing color palette. It looks more like a sign for a fast food joint.

I like the grape symbol; it's modern, sophisticated and yet playful and fun. Maybe, it could have been made to look more like a "G" somehow. I think the type is a bit kitschy, more like a typeface that a "knick-knack and gifts" sort of store would use.