603 - Brief 03 - Creating the VS Brand - Type

I went about experimenting with how I want to represent the brand, carrying out vast type experiments:

I narrowed these options down to 4 different possible typefaces and got various feedback from peers regarding each:

- Air (more standard, structured form - maybe too reflective of brands like Norse Projects?)

- Sporting Grotesque (all caps - very bold and current, but maybe too common and expected now)

- Wellrock Slab (feels more official through the serifs, impactful, but have to be mindful of brands like Victoria Secret - quite similar - VS) 

- Resistance (very classic / retro inspired, unique in this day & age, very different, would be easily recognisable)

Also consider: 

- Victoria Secret (similar)

- could get misinterpreted as 'versus' project

- Brandy can be known as V.S.O.P 

Began to try and consider in more depth who we actually are as a brand, what we will be doing and what we offer?
- Discussing justifications in great detail with my partner Max via messenger:

Sam: 

• more hyped on the bottom 2 as love the kind of retro-y feeling, yet we are offering something new and real and unique
• need to be careful with the dots in-between because of affiliations with ‘versus or v.s.’ 
• Does look better without the dots as one solid form 
• we could be known as ‘VSP’ abbreviated for the smaller logomark, not just VS cause’ve Victoria secret
• But then V.S.P with the dots does balances it out more

Max:

• Said the opposite man
• prefers the top typeface - feels more professional, well established, gives a more formal appeal 
• VSP does look nice as an abbreviation 

Sam:

• Totally agree with the justification for the top typefaces, but do we want to represent ourselves as super-formal, we are cool charismatic creatives at the end of the day??

Max:

• But i dunno what it is with me, i like bold, rigid type - Makes more of an impact
• Then again, i feel with a relaxed approach to the type, we can be more relaxed with our uploads and we don’t need to be as formal, we can let our personalities shine through more and have more fun with it so maybe you're right bro 👌🏻

Sam :

• We have to go for either ‘The V.S. Project’ & ‘V.S.P’ or ‘The VS Project’ and ‘VSP’ -  we can’t mix and match because it needs to be consistent
• Reckon we go for no dots y’know - think YSL, KSI, etc
• The dots aren’t needed

Max:

• I agree

Sam: ****

• This is what I mean tho about the last typeface - its so different and unique, we are laid back charismatic people so I feel maybe that will stay in peoples minds more than a rigid formal feeling typeface
• We aim to make engaging and emotional invoking content I suppose
• Want to make that deeper connection with the clients - showing how we are something new and different??

• certain visuals can solely sit with and touch on peoples personal experience with what it is they are seeing and what they have seen which is similar from the past. 
• Design is all about hitting home with someone and making them understand and feel comfortable with the justification and what it is that it is representing.. 
• Feel like that particular typeface can represent something trustworthy and known like VHS for example, yet a more current and trendy representation - we will be boshing out visual, moving content but feel that typeface takes something classic and known like VHS but brings it into this century and gives off this more experimental and wacky approach..
• aslong as we know what we are about and portray that through all we do, the rest will drive home naturally with the audience

Max:

• I completely understand bro, i never considered this, so im keen to understand it 👌🏻 
• Considering we are a fresh, new project/business, it might be wise to choose a less formal type then, and have something more comfortable with our audience, we could give off the wrong impression 

Sam:

• I totally agree, I think the best bet with social media (which will be our main port of call) is definitely more informal and relatable chatter which people can buy into and feel a part of - no-one wants fun content but communicated in a stiff way do they
• This is exactly why I love bouncing ideas off eachother tho because its so necessary to have those various viewpoints - to check we are justifying what we are doing correctly and that the audience will be able to digest it all

We were able to come to a solid agreement and justification regarding the chosen typeface: Resistance from VTF.





Being a use&modify typeface it did come with some peculiar characteristics (like the 'i') which I modified. 





Developed it as an uppercase wordmark, then with the abbreviated version for use within a symbol?