We were commissioned by veteran sailor and member of the historic Australia II America's Cup winner team, John Longley, to design a strong brand that would have the dual purpose of raising awareness of the event and elevating the appeal of sailing as a sport. A brand that would be striking and immediately recognisable on TV, at the smallest scale, from great distances, on the vessels themselves and, importantly, desirable on merchandise. And we had to do it with an event name with 33 letters in it. Challenge, much?
The solution called for simplicity and so we captured the energy and spirit of the event with great strength by utilising a single colour triangle to represent a sail that would work effectively on all applications and at all sizes. The fresh cyan blue and white combination was apt to convey the endless blue skies and seas of the location and merchandise designs further exploited the brandmark's shape further with a range of bold, contemporary looks to appeal to a broad market. The location's infamous winds, affectionately known as the 'Fremantle Doctor' inspired memorable slogans to add a little more Aussie-ness to the event.
Perth 2011 attracted a significant level of interest and the brand was very well received and applied to a vast range of applications resulting in an effective, memorable and successful campaign.