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What a Place — Brand Identity

A luxury furniture brand defined by bold simplicity — balancing refined minimalism with playful personality.

Role

Brand Designer

Team

Individual project

Timeline

4 Weeks

Deliverables

Logo, Brand System, Application

Tools

Illustrator, Photoshop

The Brand Challenge

Balancing minimal luxury
with expressive character

Balancing minimal luxury
with expressive character

High-end furniture brands often rely on minimal aesthetics, but many lack a distinct identity that feels both refined and expressive. The challenge was to create a brand that feels premium without becoming cold or generic.

Constraint :
A long, conversational brand name

Constraint :
A long, conversational brand name

During sketching and early ideation, I identified a key constraint: “What a Place” is a three-word, conversational name. Without careful typographic treatment, it risked undermining the sense of quality expected from a high-end furniture brand.

Key Outcomes

The final identity successfully balances refinement and expression, positioning What a Place as a high-end furniture brand with a clear and memorable personality.

  • The long, conversational brand name becomes a strength rather than a limitation

  • The identity feels premium, calm, and intentional without appearing cold

  • The system is flexible and adaptable across future brand touchpoints

  • Subtle expressive details differentiate the brand from competitors

Process

01

Research & Insights

Target Audience

Target Audience:

Design-conscious homeowners

Brand Space:

Contemporary, high-end furniture

Method:

Competitive Landscape Research. Brand includes EQ3, HAY, Vitra, artek

Insights:

  • Many high-end brands with short names feel premium because they use clean layouts, generous spacing, and very simple design choices.

  • Brands that lean too playful often lose a sense of refinement, which is something I wanted to avoid for this project.

Many high-end brands with short names feel premium because they use clean layouts, generous spacing, and very simple design choices.

Brands that lean too playful often lose a sense of refinement, which is something I wanted to avoid for this project.

Many high-end brands with short names feel premium because they use clean layouts, generous spacing, and very simple design choices.

Brands that lean too playful often lose a sense of refinement, which is something I wanted to avoid for this project.

02

Key Decision

Playaround with Empty Space

Decision |

I designed a spaced wordmark and kept the long brand name visually minimal, rather than relying on a symbol.

Why |

Many brands in this category benefit from short names, but I didn’t see the length as something to hide. By carefully adjusting spacing and typography, I was able to reduce visual density and create balance.

Outcome |

Instead of feeling like a limitation, the name becomes a defining feature of the identity.

03

Brand System

Feature

  • A wordmark-led identity that fully embraces the brand name

  • Clean typography paired with intentional, expressive spacing

  • Minimal layouts that use negative space to create calm and focus

  • A flexible system designed to adapt across both digital and physical formats

  • Subtle details that introduce personality while keeping the overall tone refined

Final Solution

|

Reflection

This project strengthened my understanding of how small typographic and layout decisions can shape brand personality. I learned the importance of using space, hierarchy, and restraint to communicate quality, especially when working with unconventional constraints like a longer brand name.

If revisiting the project, I would explore extending the system into motion and digital interactions to further enhance the brand’s expressiveness across online touchpoints.