Four Seasons Hotel Sydney has launched its high-profile new George Street bar, GRAIN, with its brand strategy, naming, a bespoke typographic identity and design created by Frost*.
As a key aspect of the redevelopment of the bar on the landmark CBD site, the iconic hotel group briefed Frost* to develop a brand strategy which will attract new markets to the watering hole and expand the customer base beyond guests and people attending functions at the hotel.
The brand and design agency helped Four Seasons Hotel execute a unique opportunity to open a 'small bar' which offered the quality experience expected from the luxury brand, without the formality of a traditional hotel bar, or the pretention associated with much of inner-Sydney's recently flourishing small bar scene. With a target market of young professional having a mid-week drink after work and a weekend crowd of tourists and people taking in dining or entertainment in the city, Frost* developed a core brand idea for the new establishment - "the fine craft of drinking."
The resulting brand created by Frost* is GRAIN, an intimate yet approachable small bar 'dedicated to the journey of the fine craft of drinking' from hand-crafted local tap beers by specialist brewers, to a largely organic and biodynamic wine list and a roving international cocktail list with a contemporary twist.
The brand name GRAIN speaks to the hand made, artisan products and sensory experiences offered at the bar, the warm, natural timbers used throughout the interior and the hops used to make beer itself.
The identity was designed by Frost* using a bespoke, hand-crafted font especially created by the studio for this project, a further echo of the brand vision. Based on joinery and woodworking, the mark represents the fine craft of both the offering of the bar and the physical space of the drinking-den itself, created by interiors company Dreamtime Australia Design. In its application across signage, website, the interior, glassware, menus, coasters, stationery and uniforms, care has been taken to employ quality natural materials such as premium timbers and leather, coupled with simple but dynamic finishes on the branding, such as copper foiling.
"Four Seasons is an institution and it's a hotel brand that is synonymous with luxury and excellence the world over," said Frost* founder and CEO, Vince Frost. "We have a great deal of experience in branding and design for the hospitality sector and the bar project was a wonderful opportunity to bring that expertise to one of the most globally recognisable hotel groups. It's incredibly exciting to be involved with Four Seasons Hotel in Sydney, at a time that will be so strategically important for shaping the future of their operations in this market."