Volare

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Branding
Package Design
Store Assets
Advertisements
Web Design

Volare is a men’s clothing company that makes high quality ties and clothing. Volare was founded during the closing turn of the 1960’s, created by an Italian-American family that needed to create ties that were stylish and inexpensive for the everyday workingman. Volare tries to achieve a high-end look by using techniques that other high-end fashion brands utilize. “Volare” in Italian means “to fly”. This project utilizes some pilot iconography, like plane propellers.

This project includes brand development designed with a high-end feel and level of sophistication that feels unique in the 1960’s. There is an extensive package design section that features a new way to look at tie packaging. The advertisements have a simple elegant style to them. The web development section shows the importance of an online presence, even for an older company. The store assets show what kind of other products Volare could sell and what employees might wear.

BRANDING

Research

Because this company was founded in the 1960s I wanted the logo to reflect that. I researched other historic clothing brands for an idea of what this logo could achieve. A lot of the logos I found are mostly letterforms and look best in one color or black & white. All of the logos utilize serif typefaces or script ones that have an ornate feel. Very Victorian era vibe to them. Because Volare is intended to be high end but affordable I thought this would be a good approach to take. When researching I also took inspiration from the colors and styles that the famous Rat Pack sported back then, vibrant blues, greens & purples.

Sketches

The name I chose for this company Volare, means to fly, so when sketching I played with the ideas of birds, feathers and clouds. I soon realized that during the 1960’s there was a fairly large expansion in the commercial and civilian flight industry. Planes became a normal, but still adventurous part of life. The plane idea also reinforces the concept behind the company. I also tried to work with creating a unique V that could stand on its own. In my sketches I wanted the V to look like the end of a necktie, like the concept of the company is hiding in plain sight.

Iterations

When starting to work on this logo I used the previously mentioned Rat Pack photos to find suitable colors for the logo. The colors are subtle and give off a royal feeling and the blues play into the aviation thought process. I also worked with making the V appear as a unique icon for the company, making a triangle sit inside the V. This was an effort to make the triangle and “v” look like the end of a tie. I used this mark in most of my iterations, paring it with an edited serif typeface to give it the ornate, classier feel a fashion company from the 1960’s would desire. In later attempts I used aviation related symbols like a plane or its propeller. I later combined these illustrated symbols with the serif typefaces.

Final Logo

For the final Primary logo I decided to stick with the V concept but incorporate it into the spelled-out version. The typeface is a very serif-y, sans serif. Yes, I did just say that. I took most of the serifs off of the classic Bodoni typeface to create the logo. I also created symbols that can be used with the logo in different scenarios. The Secondary logo uses a WWII fighter jet and the alternate logo a standstill propeller. The contrast in the weight of the text helps it achieve a fancy look and fit in with other high-end fashion brands that exist. The triangle in the V helps give it a unique feel by giving it shape, something other fashion brands don’t utilize. The shape and the other icons also help ground the company’s history.

Color Pallete

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Volare makes use of three different colors. A classic blue that gives off a royal feeling and helps you think of a nice clear sky afternoon. The black and tan help accent the blue and add a level of high-end class to the designs of the company. The type in the logo is based off the world class typeface Bodoni. I used this typeface for most things in this project, it helps add to the storied high-class tradition of the company. In other cases, I used a simple sans serif typeface, Helvetica for some number and copy work on packages for Volare.

Typography

The Primary logo is to be used for most things. It’s to be given ample surrounding room so it can stand out among other design features. The Secondary logo Is to be used in a less formal way and in circumstances that call for a mor square version of the logo. The plane also points to the history of the company. The alternate logo is to be used sparingly and only in rare circumstances, such as with use on bowtie products. The propeller is meant to resemble a bowtie.

PACKAGE DESIGN

Research

When researching for Volare’s packaging component I wanted to find something unique that would bring a different experience to buying Volare’s products. I found many examples of packaging where the product can be physically touched, something that is rather important when buying not only clothes but also neckties. I wanted Volare to follow suit in this case. Ideally people would be able to come to a store and feel the fabric of the products. The product would also show through a shape that’s significant to the company and reinforce the branding of the company. It’s also important to keep the packaging simple to give it a high end feeling that represents the company well.

Sketches

When doing the initial sketches for the various packages a lot of my focus was on incorporating a way for the customer to look and feel the product before buying. I wanted to create a tie package that would hold three or more ties and have the packaging simple enough for the consumer to walk into a store and buy a package of three or so. Not only was I trying to create packaging for neckties, but I was also planning on creating packaging for bow ties, utilizing the same logic. In my sketches I used elements like vertical lines that would represent the stripes on a suit or dress shirt.

Dielines

For the three-tie packaging I came to the conclusion that the plane illustration created during the branding phase could serve as the window to the ties. The tags and bands on this page would be used to for single neckties or bow ties. I figure the off black and tan color help contrast with the blue of the logo pretty well. The color scheme also looks very fancy with all black packaging, fairly formal style. I carried over the same style from the three-tie packaging to the bow tie packaging, using the propeller illustration as the see-through part of the packaging. The bow tie box is different from the three-tie box, however. The bow tie box is constructed to be more like a cuff box with a band that goes around the crease to keep it sealed.

Final Packaging

For Volare’s package design I want a simple elegant look. On the tie packaging I added subtle stripes to symbolize stripes on a suit to give it an elegant look. I also want to put an emphasis on the fact that this is a men’s fashion by being able to see the products. This suite of packaging is a great representation of how Volare could go about selling their products in stores.

I found it to be very crucial to be able to see the product it’s self in the packaging, so I added a cutout on both the tie and bowtie packaging. I believe the cutout ads a level of personal touch to the product; it also allows you to feel the fabric of the tie. Being able to see and feel the tie puts the emphasis on the properties of the tie or bow tie. The cuff box style can be used pretty well as a small box, carrying just a few bow ties. This is the design for the shopping bag that customers who visited the store would get upon checkout. The bag features the Volare logo and plane illustration on each side.

STORE ASSETS

In this section I explored some of the other things that could be designed for Volare. This included the possible uniform for employees at the stores, their shirts and ties. To accompany those are the engraved leather wallet with the plane illustration and the gift cards that customers could buy in the store. On the other page we have an edition of the Volare look book. It shows popular seasonal items and trends in men’s fashion. The print layout for it is similar to the way the website is laid out. There is also a mockup of what the outdoor store signage could look like. Keeping it simple and using few elements to put emphasis on the Volare logos.

Outdoor Adverts

For the outdoor adverts for Volare I wanted them to be simple and elegant to reflect the classy style of the 60s. The poster on the right uses the V from Volare to create another larger V. Again the V’s resemble the end of a tie or the collar of a suit jacket. The billboard on this page makes use of the plane illustration by making it look like it’s pulling a banner behind it. The plane pulling the banner is certainly something that speaks to the classy element. Both designs advertise the company’s site. Both also have very subtle colors that speak to the level of class. All of the designs make use of the 3 core Volare colors, keeping a very flat, classy style.

Spring Sale Campaign

I decided to mockup what a spring advertisement campaign would look like for Volare. For the campaign I made outdoor adverts as well as postcard mailer items. In all the pieces I kept the same color scheme, primarily utilizing the blue and tan colors. In the campaign pieces I used some photos I took of a friend. The green leaf background helps add another dimension to the design and helps backup the spring aspect of the campaign. The purple paisley tie also shouts spring at the viewer but doesn’t compete with the blue background too much. The outdoor adverts make reference to the company website, where people can checkout deals on products.

The mailing pieces of the campaign include a design for a two-sided postcard, an envelope and a letter. The envelope is designed to have a blue cover and a have the text and logo in tan. The letter that would come in the envelope is more intended for someone who is signed up for a mailing list. That’s why the letter has a few specific coupons on it. The letter has a more personal touch to it. Similar design for the postcard, leaving half of one side white for the mailing information. The postcard would also feature the picture of the man in the suit and the leafy background. It also has a code on the reverse side that can be used on the website.

WEB DESIGN

Research & Sketches

When researching for the web design of this project I looked at other clothing ecommerce sites. Many of them use wide header images to showcase their products. I wanted the site to look high end like other components of this project but be easy to use.

In my sketches I tried to keep things as simple as possible, making things very modular. I wanted the site to be extremely easy to because complicated ecommerce websites can prove to be deadly.

Web Pages

In trying to keep with the high-class brand I tried to make the website clean and straightforward. I used very calm colors that don’t overpower the beauty of the content. The straight forwardness of the website also gives off the elegant look I was going for. Keeping with the trends of the sites I researched I utilized lots of big hero images to draw the user in. In many of the pages I used a 3-column layout that is easy to navigate. I used lots of blue boxes with subtitles in them or as buttons, so they stick out against the white background of the site. Another important factor when building this site was making sure it’s responsive and works on mobile. Most Internet users access the Internet from their phones so it’s definitely a point of emphasis. This being the case I included a store locator page so users can find the nearest store.