WhyteFort Assoc. Brand Identity
Stage 1 of branding project: Creating logo design - Defining the brand - Logo creation
WhyteFort Associates are an executive search company covering the UK, Americas and the Middle East. Focusing on cyber and information security, the firm's sterling reputation is built on its record for placing C-level security management executives and building the teams that support them. Whether searching for individual security executives, or building support teams, Whytefort Associates are able to identify, assess and attract the most outstanding cyber and information security executives.
The Brief
WhyteFort's Managing director, Jay Pathak, first approached me after seeing my design portfolio. After this initial contact I sent him a logo design questionnaire to fill out. After looking over the completed questionnaire this was the design brief in short:
Jay wanted to re-brand WhyteFort, since expanding his business to the UK he was looking for a brand that reflected the exclusivity of his business and was looking for a logo that is subtle and sophisticated and he also wanted it to reflect professionalism, quality, uniqueness, experience, innovation and elegance.
The logo was to be used on the WhyteFort website and also on his business stationery and promotional material. The target market of his business is white collar Cyber security specialists and top corporations who deal with technically sophisticated, cyber security projects.
Research
Upon receiving the signed agreement, I then started researching the project. This included looking up his competitors, researching his industry and searching for other logos in the industry, among other things.
Brainstorming, Conceptualising & Reflection
The next stage of the project was developing the logo. Developing the logo design concept is where creativity comes into play. Based on the design brief and research, this is where I creatively let loose. I brainstormed and sketched down my ideas and then experimented with them on the computer. I also took time to reflect on the designs and have a fresh perspective on the job which is crucial part of the process when designing a logo.
When conceptualising, I try to convey a deeper meaning or some sort of visual puzzle into the logo. A good example would be the arrow hidden in the FedEx logo… did you know about that one?
These concept based logos have a bigger impact on the viewer and when a designer creates one, they know it straight away… It is unique, adds a dimension to the experience and to the identity as a whole.
WhyteFort Logo
The concept behind the logo is based on the fact that the 'F' of the word fort also becomes a fortress symbol - something that Jay was keen to have from his initial conversations. I had initially worked up some designs that incorporated the fortress symbol in to a sort of shield or embelem but then decided that this was too much of a mainstream approach and WhyteFort needed something a little more conceptual.
I also spent hours searching for the right typeface and settled on a uniquly serifed font called 'this' which stems from the stencil family of fonts but worked perfectly with the negative space symbol I'd created. The two elements came together perfectly.
Completed Logo
After many experiments, tests and tweaks I finally had a logo which I showed to Jay. I only showed a couple of concepts before sending him a more finalised design - I was so confident in the design I knew I'd got it very close to the mark.
Within 10 minutes I had a reply from Jay
“LOVE IT!!!”
In summary, the WhyteFort logo is a unique, memorable, timeless, creative, sophisticated logo with a touch of modernism that portray’s Jay's business in the best possible light.