TĪMA RAINCOATS: BRANDING

tīma Raincoats

An exercise in branding

OVERVIEW

Objective: Create a outdoor gear company with an emphasis on branding.
Deliverable:  A company style guide
Timeline:  1.5 weeks
My role:  I worked independently to create the brand, from competitive research to logo design and final style guide.

STORY

Clockwise: Singin' in the Rain, IT, Dark, Jurassic Park

As a kid I was obsessed with 1952’s Singin’ in the Rain and the energy with which Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds danced across the screen under studio-made torrential downpour — a film that also happened to showcase the bright yellow raincoat. In the years to follow, I saw this iconic coat repeated in pivotal films, such as IT (1990) and Jurassic Park, and most recently in the Netflix original series Dark.

I have always wanted this jacket for myself. But one that fit right, that had the right colour of yellow, and that could truly withstand the elements. Thus, the (fictitious) company was born…

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The name of a company is vital to its success. Ideally I wanted something short and recognizable, maybe a bit of a "nonsense word", but which also spoke to the product. So taking my cue from the idea of old movies… nostalgia…. travelling back in time… classic design… timeless looks…. I looked to the origin word of “time”:

tīma

Old English, of Germanic origin; related to tide

The word "tĪma" ticked off all the checkmarks of what I was looking for, and that it was related to the word "tide" was just an extra bonus. It adds that extra connection to water, beach, fishermen, etc.

LOGO DESIGN PROCESS

I was originally drawn to the leitmotif of fishermen and the sea and the classic iconography that goes along with it, such as fish and anchors, etc. However this felt a bit overplayed.

Looking at the word "tīma", I was intrigued by the Latin ī (with the line over it). I noticed how it seemed like this line was protecting the i underneath, similar to how an umbrella protects you from the rain. I explored that angle however it seemed too abstract. It would always have to be explained.

So I started sketching.

I was really digging this little mascot idea, however it was starting to feel a little too young for me. This was a brand intended for adults, not necessarily children. So I took this mascot idea and tried to sketch a more "grown up" version.

I personally was very excited about this new direction. I enjoyed how this older mascot had a bit of an anime vibe and was a bit more sophisticated. However I quickly realized that it isn't about me. After A/B testing the two variations, the first mascot iteration won out by a mile.

The final result:

With this logo, I tried to mimic the swoops of the wordmark in the lines of the mascot (i.e. the curve of the "a" and the curve of the arm). I also purposely drew the yellow outside of the lines to keep it imperfect; the goal was to add a little fun, to maybe allude to some movement, and to play on the theme of childhood and nostalgia.

MOODBOARDS

In an attempt to zero in on a voice and tone for the tīma brand, I created three different moodboards:

Up until this point, I had a hard time trying to settle on a tone and voice for this particular project. However, these three moodboards, with their distinct energies and vibes (along with their logo variations), set me on the right track.

Although I am confident that each direction would have resulted in an interesting and successful project, I ended up using the aesthetic of the second moodboard as my "North Star". Clean and minimalist. Open and inviting. Modern.