Embrace Milestones to Advance Your Brand Identity

Celebrating a corporate milestone with a fresh visual identity is an excellent way to reinforce a brand’s achievements and purpose. Brand anniversary logos are an effective way to convey the reliability, trustworthiness, and stability that come with longevity.

These limited-use marks can be used in a variety of ways to set the historic year apart—both internally (via communications, wayfinding, events, and merchandise) and externally (via marketing, packaging, advertising, and social media).

For 30 years the Experiential Design Firm ZEBRADOG has created visual brand systems for organizations nationwide. Anniversary logos are an integral part of a brand’s visual identity.

We recently created a few notable examples for places that are dear to us.

Madison’s Place Since 1948 The Edgewater Celebrates Diamond Year

Located in the heart of downtown Madison, Wisconsin on the shores of Lake Mendota The Edgewater is a storied boutique hotel celebrating its 75th anniversary. As the only area hotel with a AAA Four Diamond Rating, the property consistently ranks as one of the top hotels in the region. Throughout the decades, The Edgewater has hosted an array of celebrities, including Elvis Presley, Elton John, Bob Hope, Bob Marley, and the Dalai Lama, to name a few.

The anniversary logo takes inspiration from the Art Moderne design of the original hotel tower—it emphasizes curved forms and long horizontal lines. The new facade has a ship-like prow presiding over Lake Mendota to provide stunning views. The curvy script of The Edgewater is a nod to the original logo married with a bold typeface for the angular year hugging an embedded icon of the Capitol to signify not only its enviable location but also its prominence in the city of Madison.

The Edgewater 75th anniversary logo is used throughout the hospitality experience from marketing materials to wayfinding. It is also used prominently in a storytelling social media campaign celebrating the past and present.

100 Years at Red Crown Lodge, Birthplace of the Corporate Retreat

More than a beautiful Northwoods escape, Red Crown Lodge owns a place in history as the birthplace of the corporate retreat. This is the place that set the standard.

In the early 1900s, Colonel Stewart, CEO of Standard Oil, set out to find the perfect spot for his executives to gather. He believed that playing together would help his team forge a better relationship and become more productive. Offering the peacefulness of nature with access to an abundance of outdoor activities, Standard Oil purchased an estate overlooking Trout Lake, establishing Red Crown Lodge in 1922 as their corporate retreat. For over 80 years, partnerships were built, deals were negotiated, and teams were strengthened.

A milestone mark should stand out as special but be related to the standard identity. For Red Crown’s 100-year anniversary logo, the circular design and use of white create a noticeable contrast from the brand’s standard black and gold shield. The logo is anchored in the brand’s rich, prestigious red color accented by gold and black. The crown is prominently featured with a classic typeface for the 100-year ribbon. It’s a design that lives up to the stellar reputation of this Wisconsin treasure.

A Century of Memories at Nakoma Golf Club

In the early 1900s, the Nakoma neighborhood in Madison, Wisconsin was rapidly expanding. The residents of the area were invested in growing the community, specifically by establishing a golf club. On June 23, 1923, after numerous debates, the Nakoma Country Club was first established.

What originally consisted of a rudimentary 9-hole golf course with a temporary clubhouse evolved into a full 18 holes of golf, with appropriate Native American names given to each of the holes, designed by Thomas Bendelow in 1925.

This popular private golf club and historic landmark approached ZEBRADOG to advance its visual identity system, keeping its name Nakoma which translates as “I do as I promise” and using imagery of people indigenous to these lands for over 1,000 years. To deepen this rich sense of place for the Nakoma community, the anniversary logo was recently commissioned to extend the club’s branding into a special mark used for celebrations and commemorative merchandise.

Celebrating a milestone or need a fresh, expert look at your brand identity? Explore ZEBRADOG’s Experiential Design Portfolio or contact us to get started.