Logo
Brand Identity
Naming
Illustration
Dien Bien Phu is a store in a small town in Slovakia with a very good reputation and loyal customers. They sell everything for household including kitchenware, home decoration, repair tools, garden equipment, but also clothes and shoes – among others.
Problem Statement: Local shops are getting pushed away from the market while big foreign chains gain popularity. Dien Bien needs to keep up with competitors to secure their position on the market.
Solution: Visual identity that focuses on Dien Bien's strengths and advantages over chain stores. We communicate community, friendliness and personal customer service.
Challenge: Dien Bien has been working without visual identity for 12 years. The main challenge is to keep the store recognizable by customersa so that they don't think that a different store replaced Dien Bien.
Dien Bien Phu
Logo, Social Media
Key Findings: Dien Bien is a family business owned by a couple. The owners work in the store every day and they listen to the customers' needs which one can't see in big chain stores. Naturally, the owners are go-to people and are well known by their customers, with whom they developed personal relationships over the years.
None of the competitors is design driven which gives Dien Bien the opportunity to stand out among competitors and gain more popuarity in town.
Before we came, the store was called 'Dien Bien Phu' after the owner's home town in Vietnam. However, we noticed that many people didn't know how to pronounce this lengthy name, and they called it 'the Asian store', which stereotypically doesn't compliment the quality of the products.
We decided to shorten it to 'Dien Bien' only. Dien Bien is a very catchy and memorable name that will resonate in customers and at the same time will stay recognizable to all who know Dien Bien Phu. On top of that, Dien Bien is province where the city Dien Bien Phu lays, so the meaning behind the name stays similarly close to the owner's heart.
Word of mouth is Dien Bien's best advertisement. With the new name we aim to strengthen Dien Bien's brand awareness and therefore we use a mere logotype that will put the name in the center of attention.
The font used is Alegreya Bold - the main font of Dien Bien brand identity.
The brand colours are warm to portray sociability, hapiness, coziness. They are gender-neutral.
Main colours are used for type and illustrations, while the same colours in 30% opacity are used for background. Dark blue is used for longer text paragraphs.
Illustrations are some of the strongest elements of Dien Bien visual identity. They portray the 2 owners of the store as a symbol of involvement, personal care and small family business. The illustrations should entertain, but also establish connection and trust.
The two characters differ in personality based on their real representatives. Through the illustrations the 'main faces' of the business can directly communicate with their customers on social media in a friendly and aesthetic manner.
To emphasize authenticity of brand, we don't use stock images - we rather take our own photos directly in the store. The photos needn't have professional lightning or background - we capture products as they are.
Apart from products, on the social media we like to promote the staff and community. We promote the informal atmosphere of a small-town store.
The brand tone of voice that was decided for answers the tone of voice that customers experience in the physical store: informal, friendly and inviting. On the social media Dien Bien uses emojis so that the audience feels closer connection to the brand. We communicate: 'We understand you. We are one of you.'
Alegreya Bold is the main font of Dien Bien brand identity. It is used for headers in the physical space and social media.
Alegreya is a serif typeface which helps to communicate that the company is traditional, established, and trustworthy.
The secondary typeface is Open Sans. It is used for longer paragraphs for its excellent legibility characteristics and generous weight variations.
Open Sans has open forms and a neutral, yet friendly appearance. It was optimized for print, web, and mobile interfaces.
