The design brief was to develop a brand that would reflect the nature of Zen Kokyū’s services, and appeal to both Japanese and foreign audiences. This was in line with Zen Kokyū’s goal of increasing brand awareness and expanding internationally.
The New Identity
For the rebrand, it was decided that the name ‘Zen Kokyū’ would be used globally, instead of using ‘Zen Breathing’ for English audiences. This was intended to maintain consistency within the brand, and also appeal to foreigners.
The final icon design features a topdown view of stacked stones, a common image associated with the Zen lifestyle. Different shapes and variants of this icon were created, and applied across areas such as social media posts and print.
The wordmark logo utilises a sans serif font with different stroke widths, in reference to the varying strokes seen in Japanese calligraphy. Kanji characters of Zen Kokyū’s name were also included, to tie in with the brand’s Japanese roots.
Wordmark on Graphical Treatment
Wordmark on Dark Background
Wordmark on Light Background
For the branding, neutral tones were used to reflect values such as simplicity in Zen culture. In particular, warm greys were chosen to add an earthy element.
Heading
Lora
Zen Kokyū
Sub-Heading
Lora
Improve our health and wellbeing
Body
Noto Sans
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat.
A combination of serif and sans serif fonts were used when creating documents. It was important to choose a font that supports both English and Japanese, in order to cater to Zen Kokyū’s different markets.
For Zen Kokyū’s website and social media, imagery was also used to generate a specific mood for the brand. Images mainly featured temples, Zen gardens, and elements of traditional Japanese culture. This wanted intended for the viewer to feel calm and at peace, in line with Zen Kokyū’s values.
