BRANDING

Greenmarket Grocery

Creating a visual identity for a grocery delivery service offering goods from local greenmarkets.

Overview

Greenmarket Grocery is grocery delivery service that enables consumers to order groceries and wares from their favorite local greenmarkets. The brand visuals incorporate the warm, DIY feel of community greenmarkets. Banners, handwritten type, and line drawings accompany earthy colors and textures. By capturing this quaint and welcoming energy, Greenmarket Grocery connects at-home-chefs and purveyors of all things to the lively and bustling greenmarkets they love.

Process

Comparative Analysis

I began the design process by analyzing brands that offered services similar to Greenmarket Grocery. I took note of their service offerings as well as their visual styles. From a service perspective, it was important to offer something unique. From a visual perspective, the brand needed to look like it fit within the marketplace without looking too similar to its competitors. Most brands featured fairly simple wordmarks and packaging and utilized earthy tones. I took this into consideration when constructing Greenmarket Grocery’s visual identity, but sought to stand out by introducing handwritten type alongside whimsical illustrations that echoed the rustic, DIY aesthetic of greenmarkets.

Overview of competitors (click to enlarge) — Overview of competitors *(click to enlarge)*

Competitor visual style (click to enlarge) — Competitor visual style *(click to enlarge)*

“Greenmarket Grocery allows consumers to select specific farms/producers they’d like to order from. These items are not available at local grocery stores or on other common grocery apps.”

Defining the Greenmarket Grocery Brand

Based on the information gleaned from the comparative analysis, I developed a more definitive path for Greenmarket Grocery.

Brand Influences and Visual Style

I was inspired by the natural, rustic tones that permeate greenmarkets as well as the sense of community amongst shoppers and vendors alike. The tents and handwritten signs make the stalls feel very local and personal — a stark contrast to traditional grocery stores. Greenmarket Grocery sought to replicate the community-based, handcrafted energy that makes greenmarkets so appealing and inviting. In the comparative analysis, I noticed that many brands featured fairly simple word marks and packaging and utilized earthy tones. I took this into consideration when constructing Greenmarket Grocery’s visual identity, but sought to stand out by introducing handwritten type alongside whimsical illustrations that echoed the rustic, DIY aesthetic of greenmarkets.

Logo

Drawing from the above images, it seemed most fitting that the brand logo should feature some elements of hand lettering/hand-illustration and signage to visually connect Greenmarket Grocery to the greenmarket environment. Doing so would, in turn, evoke the feelings and emotions associated with greenmarkets amongst potential shoppers and encourage a more emotional connection with the brand.

Sketches

The below sketches demonstrate a variety of approaches (pictorial, letter-symbol, and wordmark possibilities), though most harken back to the hand-drawn and/or banner aesthetic.

Logo Refinements

From the sketches, I narrowed the logos down to two distinct directions. Iterations 4-6 of the first direction (left) were done (partially or fully) with digitized hand lettering. The second approach (right) utilized a handwritten font (Aldi) for greater visual consistency, since the type had to fit cleanly in the banner shape and be legible at multiple sizes.

I ultimately eliminated any options that utilized hand lettering (or a hand lettered font) for both words, as this felt a little too messy and ran the risk of looking unprofessional. I decided that one word should be hand lettered and the other should maintain a clean, tracked out appearance. I also decided against using a texture as it was difficult to see at smaller sizes.

For the sans serif typeface I ultimately decided on Frutiger, as the Mrs. Eaves R felt too stylized when combined with a handwritten font.

First set of logo options

Second set of logo options

Ultimately, I narrowed the choices down to the above options. I chose the option on the left because it incorporated both a banner and handwritten typeface. To me, this drew more visual parallels to an actual greenmarket. Because the handwritten typeface wasn’t overly decorative, the logo remained clean and legible while maintaining the DIY energy of a true greenmarket. Because the target audience includes individuals with at least some disposable income, a cleaner logo was preferred as it was felt to be evocative of a higher end product or service.

Adding Color

It was important that the brand colors echoed the organic, rustic colors of a greenmarket. To gather inspiration for color, I compiled a visual moodboard that conveyed elements of the natural aesthetic I sought to develop. I was drawn to the browns of natural wood and, cardboard and grain bags. I chose Pantone Black 5 U, a cool-toned brown that would contrast adequately against light backgrounds. For type, it would provide a rustic alternative to black. I chose Pantone 349U, a forest green, to complement the brown. This tone, especially at various tints, was quite versatile. It evoked the tone of leaves and produce.

In examining the brand moodboard I compiled, the natural brown and green tones stood out to me. The illustrations inspired the brand activations (particularly packaging), maintaining the “hand done” theme that the logo suggests.

Logo with Color

The finished logo uses Pantone 349 U. The banner is a 45% tint. Of note, when the logo appears on a natural paper surface (i.e., cardboard), the logo is set in one solid color (either solid black or 349 U at 100%) with the text knocked out (revealing the object it’s printed on). In the below activations, this can be seen on the delivery box and the pastry bag.

Brand Activations

The brand activations introduce some additional neutral tones, like beige and tan. Illustrated produce adorns packaging. The website maintains the hand drawn and illustrated aesthetic while employing vibrant imagery of produce. The imagery on the home page will change depending upon what’s in season.

The brand “swag” maintains a clean feel, bearing just the logo. Smaller items, such as pastry bags, shy away from illustrations as well. Illustrations on small items might appear too busy.