Repositioning chairs as heirloom pieces with influence on everyday comfort.

What I did: Creative direction, visual identity, graphic design, brand guidelines

Chairs tend to be an afterthought, despite being one of the most used pieces of furniture in a home—and that, universally. From this conviction, Gesture Home was born: a high-end chair-only company with a mission to raise the seating standard.

1. The furniture industry is crowded with many (big) players.
2. Bigger brands may copy products.
3. People would likely feel reluctant to spend hundreds of dollars on “just a chair”.
4. The brand would have to appeal to both, millennial end consumers and interior designers that purchase on behalf of their often more mature clients.

It was clear to me that the strategy would have to be differentiation in all aspects. Founder Kara had already laid the first brick by making Gesture Home a strictly chair-only company, not another furniture brand. After more research and the brand development phase, the visual identity was the next step. The goal we set for Gesture Home wasn’t just to look different from the competitors. We knew that people would need a good reason to spend $600+ on “just a chair”. So the identity had to support Gesture Home’s message that their products are heirloom-quality, comfort-bringing pieces that hold a lot of power over how people feel every day. I needed to help reposition the chair in people’s minds.

The primary design brief that emerged from the brand strategy was to create a brand that’s rich in contrasts: Sophisticated but cheeky. Weird but in a cool way. Classic but fun. So very much offbeat without being alienating. With that in mind, I presented and fine-tuned different design concepts throughout the project to help us inch closer to what felt appropriate.

Out of the 3 unique logo concepts I created, founder Kara and I quickly agreed on the one that champions the chair in a personified form (#1). The picture of the hugging chair does two things: communicate the comforting feeling Gesture Home’s chairs give, and the feeling that customers have towards their Gesture Home pieces: attachment. Initially, the chair legs featured “human” feet, but as we kept iterating, we ended up toning it down to keep just the arms “human”.

No one wants to see a logo used to death. Graphic elements that are consistent with the brand’s visual language offer a welcomed change when creating marketing materials. They also allow a brand to communicate additional aspects of its strategy that the logo maybe doesn’t emphasise to its fullest extent—because a logo can’t be everything all at once. With that in mind, I designed a suite of on-brand illustrations that further tell Gesture Home’s story of good times and treasured possessions.

A visual representation of Gesture Home's belief that a chair is the soul, the central point, of a home.

Again, this image paints a scene around the chair as a centre piece of dinners, reading sessions, drinks... The doves are symbols of harmony and love.

The house is a literal nod to the ‘Home’ in ‘Gesture Home’. Could function as a tag or sticker.

Early versions of the doves (presented in the first concept round): I later removed the stars and de-humanised the doves. This felt too "military" and young.

People are bored with the beige aesthetic. It more often than not feels uninspired and overused. A bit lifeless, too. So I opted for more exciting, warm, spring-like tones to communicate effortless luxury instead.
‍
The result: a colour palette that feels… Youthful but not immature. Comforting but intriguing. Sophisticated but approachable.

Strict professionalism achieved via boring backdrops and very polished photoshoots is what I advised against. I suggested to explore more creative ways to put chairs front and centre, so that landing on the brand’s Instagram wouldn’t feel like opening up a chair catalogue but rather like discovering a fan account dedicated to chairs. This could help combat the ad fatigue that today’s consumers are experiencing. On top of being perceived as less aggressive advertising, this approach of sharing a mix of authentic, “in-context” imagery and creative concept photography would also allow people to better envision the chairs in their lives. The photographs would display a lifestyle more than just a product.

We're still awaiting product photos as Gesture Home is in the final stages of completing the first chair prototype.

Equipped with a strong brand identity and the tools to maintain it (32 page strategy deck + 31 page visual guidelines pdf), Gesture Home is set up to become the go-to “cool” brand for chairs once they launch later this year.

"Thank you so much for bringing my vision to reality! As you know, it was a challenge knowing what I wanted but not really knowing where to start. So thank you for bridging that gap for me and creating something I'm excited to share and have represent my baby! It was so great working with you."

Bringing the appeal of physical books into the modern world.

Gesture Home

—

Chair company

—

Case study

—

Gesture Home

—

Chair company

—

Case study

—

Gesture Home

—

Chair company

—

Case study

—

Gesture Home

—

Chair company

—

Case study

—

Gesture Home

—

Chair company

—

Case study

—

Gesture Home

—

Chair company

—

Case study

—

Repositioning chairs as heirloom pieces with influence on everyday comfort.

What I did: Creative direction, visual identity, graphic design, brand guidelines

Context

Problems

Solution

The brief: contrasts

Logo Concepts: creating a symbol for cherishment

Branded Illustrations that tell a story of good times and treasured possessions

spring-like Colours

Photography that helps people envision the chairs in their own lives

End result

Client testimonial