Project Overview
Multi-award-winning Aviair is a regional airline and charter flight operator based in Western Australia. With the growing demand in the region, there was a need for a new airline carrier to be created to connect capital cities directly with the smaller rural hubs.
They wanted to create an entirely new airline brand scalable into new regions and stretch into complementary services, such as freight, leisure, and accommodation sectors.
The Aviair team approached Davidson to help develop the positioning, naming, visual identity, and guidelines for this exciting new brand. And so, Nexus Airlines was born.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Strategy: Grant Davidson
Strategy: Tania Donohue
Design Director: Michael Callan
Lead Designer: Kevin Lam
Client Service: Lucy MacKay
Finished Artist: Barry Rochford
Project Brief
The brief was to create an entirely new airline brand scalable into new regions and stretch into complementary services, such as freight, leisure, and accommodation sectors.
As a homegrown company based in the Kimberley, Aviair wanted to ensure that the community felt ownership of the brand and paid homage to its local roots.
The project scope included; Brand strategy and positioning, naming, visual identity, airplane livery, and guidelines.
The new brand needed to express the critical values of safety, quality, professionalism, and sustainability, as well as be positioned as approachable, affordable, and accessible.
Project Innovation/Need
The vision and purpose of Nexus is to connect the state’s regions, hubs, and cities, creating greater access for all and enabling all corners of Western Australia to thrive. The strategy, naming, narrative, identity, and local community involvement helped to amplify the cause creating a virtuous cycle of success.
From a design perspective, the Nexus brand features a stylised ‘X’ symbol made from converging shapes that connect to represent the name ‘Nexus’. They are aerodynamic forms inspired by aerofoils, capturing the idea of flight and seamless connections. This is complemented by the symbol of a bird flying forward that is created by the negative space.
The Nexus wordmark is bespoke sans serif font crafted with subtle rounded corners that harmonise with the aerodynamic shapes of the brand mark. The uppercase treatment communicates the brand with confidence and professionalism as an airline backed by 38 years of aviation experience.
The colour palette is inspired by the landscape of Broome—the primary location where Nexus is based. A palette of blue and teal reference scenes of the water, coastline, and clear skies. Paired with a deeper navy, the blue palette symbolises calmness, professionalism, freedom, and stability. The colour is applied with gradient blends that are fluid, dynamic and
contemporary.
Design Challenge
The design challenge was to create a brand identity for an airline that not only captured the essence of air travel but also effectively communicated its unique selling point of connecting destinations that are typically overlooked or unpopular.
The branding needed to stand out in the competitive airline industry while aligning with the specific design constraints of the tail fin symbol.
Therefore, the challenge encompassed designing a brand that had the appropriate aesthetic for an airline, differentiated itself from competitors, and effectively conveyed the company's mission of connecting less-traveled destinations.
Effectiveness
The branding project sparked significant media attention gaining millions of dollars worth of earned media in the press, including ABC News, Business News Australia, Australian Financial Review, and The Western Australian.
The business has also gained significant support from local governments, the community, and customers, achieving thousands of social media followers in the first few months of operation.
Graphic Design - Identity and Branding - Corporate
This award celebrates creative and innovative design in the traditional or digital visual representation of ideas and messages. Consideration given to clarity of communication and the matching information style to audience.
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