Rebrand revelation

What we did

Family business Barnes Interiors has built deep roots in Wollongong going back almost 80 years and three generations, specializing in window treatments, automation and custom décor. Brothers Steen and Cade Barnes wanted to build on their strengths and community heritage, refining their brand to showcase the artistry of their totally modern approach.

Anyone who talks to the brothers Barnes or sees their work on Instagram will realise instantly that they’re not your everyday installers – they’re masters. They don’t
just measure and quote, they listen, visualize and work with every customer to create their ideal space and reveal their perfect lifestyle. And with years of experience and vast product knowledge they offer a premium service based on the art of being able to read people.

Window treatments let you choose how you want to reveal the outside world – and what you want to reveal of your own inside world. And when you work with masters, the results can be nothing short of revelatory. So naturally we anchored the brand story in the idea of ‘revelation’.

As a starting point, we translated this idea into a statement for the desired customer experience: “It’s like I’m seeing my living space for the first time. It reflects me and my lifestyle perfectly – it’s like you’ve revealed me to myself.”

Next, we developed an elevator pitch on the same theme to use in customer conversations and online. We cascaded this to provide carefully differentiated positioning for the company’s exclusive relationship with Luxaflex.

Now it was time to build a sophisticated, contemporary brand that breathes this experience from the inside out. The brand attributes? Premium but approachable. Heritage but not old fashioned.

With this in mind, we created a new identity system to establish a cohesive look and feel across the company’s touchpoints. We developed a new wordmark, supporting icon and design standards for stationery and print collateral, websites, social platforms, signage and environmental graphics, and ephemera like work shirts, measuring tapes and scented candles. 

The visual language also needed to appeal to any customer, no matter their personal style. So we created a neutral palette to act as canvas for each customer’s own vision to play out, with the bold use of black bringing gravitas and strength befitting the masters.

The mixed suite of typefaces ties the system together including a balance of traditional and modern serif and san-serif styles, and a handwritten script to signify the personal touch that Barnes Interiors is known for.

Last but not least, we shaped social media and web content into stories that contextualise the customer experience and the role of good design, self-expression and the brand’s unique local heritage within a larger narrative.

Confident and extensible, the system can be easily adapted for future expansion. We’re excited to see where the Barnes family takes it next.