In the quest for differentiation-Designing the visual identity for Shawarma King
We felt the need to design a visual identity for Sharwama King, so we took the bull’s horn, dusted it and blew it to set us in the mood because why not?
Why sharwama?
Sharwama, because you just cannot resist one, especially one with a great identity.
The challenge.
We understudied a lot of Sharwama spots and realized that they had ordinary designs mainly because they were more concerned about the food alone. We embarked on a quest for differentiation, a difference that could appeal to our creative juices and then our tastebuds, as Seun Badejo says “the core function of a brand’s visual language is to drive distinction”
The goal?
The goal was to increase sales and improve customer satisfaction in a way that would position the brand to easily grow into a restaurant chain that not only served shawarma but also served recipes made with chicken
we got talking with Dolapo and Mathew and we came up with some key words that would help the ideation process. Words like:
These words guided us through the design process.
Setting the Mood
Setting the mood of the project is an integral part of this process as it informs the decisions to be taken during the design process.
The mood for the project is set with halftone illustrations that are done to mimic the splotch patterns on flour tortilla(shawarma bread), to create a consistent image,
The halftone illustrations will be implemented on the package design and select communication materials.
The typeface inspiration comes from a mixture of arabian writing, modern lettering and the shape of a wrapped shawarma.
All together 3 major Identity devices were created:
- Set of Halftone Illustrations
- Custom Typography
- Primary & Secondary Logo
Picking the colors of Royalty
Choosing the colors to represent Shawarma King was a very intensive process, colours chosen were chosen because of the brands intrinsic values and they were then tested on different mediums to determine how well they would work together and to ensure the optimum contrast on communication materials.
The Shawarma King Logo
The creation of The Shawarma King Logo was based on the tenets — royalty and shawarma, Inspiration from arabian typeface mixed with modern san-serif are also part of what defined its make-up.
The Shawarma King logo has two parts:
- The “Tortilla Crown” logomark.
- The Shawarma King logotype.
The Tortilla Crown Logomark
The Shawarma King Logotype
Construction and Clear Space
Developing the illustration style
The Illustration style is inspired by splotch patterns on the flour tortillas used to wrap Shawarma, the goal is to use it as a point of connection between the brand and the consumers, mimicking something they are actually familiar with.
Working out “King Type”
King Type was created to express the brand in every way possible, it is a sans-serif typeface with curves and edges that mimic a shawarma. it also has features from arabian lettering and has a modern finishing to keep it balanced.
Once the visual Identity was done, we definitely had to play around with it, Implementing it on packaging, posters, and social media post templates, We just had to have some fun :)
