[SYD21]

Key Dates

25 Feb 2021 -Launch Deadline
29 Apr 2021 -Standard
26 Aug 2021 -Final Deadline
09 Sep 2021 -Judging
16 Sep 2021 -Winners Announced
19 Oct 2021 -presentation
Friday, 12 December 2025 04:28 local time

Freedom Brand Relaunch

Freedom Furniture / The General Store | Graphic Design - Identity and Branding


 
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Project Commissioner

Freedom Furniture

Project Creator

The General Store

Project Overview

Freedom Furniture was an icon of 90’s retail. But through a lack of innovation over the last 20 years it had fallen into a sea of sameness within the category. Sales had been in a downward spiral for years and the business had failed to attract the younger audience that was critical to its survival.

Our job was to breathe new life into this much loved brand before it faded into oblivion. We needed to attract a new audience to the brand and urgently arrest the sales decline.

Here’s how we did it...

Team

The General Store Matt Newell, Founder & CEO Reeshma Bhanji, Creative Director Genevieve Read, Design Lead Olivia Kaufman, Group Account Director Pat de Silva, Project Manager Chee Productions Matt Chee, Producer & CEO George Antoni, Photographer Ribal Hosn, Videographer

Project Brief

There were three key objectives to this brief:

1. We needed to attract a younger audience, with a higher lifetime value;

2. The brand research scored high on awareness but low on relevance. So we had to create a brand that felt contemporary and aspirational;

3. We needed a distinctive brand platform to differentiate the business from increased competitive pressure.

Project Innovation/Need

Our brand strategy revolved around ‘objects of desire’.

It was a strategy that invited us to elevate the brand platform considerably, so we went for it. We broke the conventions of the furniture category and instead turned to techniques used by the fashion industry.

The brand identity shifted to a bolder, more monochromatic platform that would allow seasonal stories to wash over the top. We developed a restrained icon that is subtly born out the F in Freedom. And we developed a distinctive aural mnemonic to assist with sonic branding.

We teamed up with legendary fashion photographer, George Antoni. We made the effort to shoot in stunning locations (rather than shooting in a studio like most furniture retailers). And we collaborated directly with the furniture design team at Freedom to dramatise the design intent of the product itself.

Design Challenge

The key design challenge was to create a brand platform that was pointed and aspirational. But it also needed to be a brand with mass appeal stylistically.

We addressed this by leaning in hard on ‘aspirational Australian living’. It’s a combination of relaxed vibes with an obsession over the details. Affordable and luxury. Crafted and carefree.

The colour palette features uniquely Australian tones. The talent celebrated cultural diversity. And we leaned hard on a tone of voice that was knowledgeable and approachable.

Effectiveness

Since launching the new brand platform in October 2020, there has been an immediate impact on sales, with an increase of +24% on the same period YoY.

And, the new brand platform has since been rolled out across over 3000 assets, from stores, to signage, web and brochures. All within a 6-month period and with meticulous precision.

“Dynamic, deliberate and visionary” is how Freedom CEO, Blaine Callard described the agency’s work on the creation of this new brand.


Graphic Design - Identity and Branding

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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