Kino Logo and Style Guide

Part II of a series documenting the design development of the Kino menswear brand

Fig 1 — The four acceptable variations of the Kino logo in three color schema.

The basic Kino logo consists of two main components: the prickly pear cactus iconography and the name Kino typed directly adjacent. An alternative, more compact logo is available and encouraged for usage wherever it makes sense throughout the website or other promotional materials. The advantage of the default logo is full legibility of the moniker and distinction from the cactus icon, and should be used if strong name recognition is required.

The alternative icon sacrifices some legibility for more aesthetic appeal as well as a more compact footprint. One can imagine a brick and mortar storefront where a physical representation of the logo can be created by using two staggered metal sculptures.

Also acceptable are the text and icon components on their own in specific applications, for example among other text or as a web icon respectively. The text-only logo includes a small colored fruit element from the cactus icon to differentiate it from the naked typeface.

Official Color Palette

Fig 2 — Primary and secondary color palettes

The main inspiration for the Kino brand pulls from the desert southwest. This extends to the visual branding and color palette. The two primary bold colors draw from the bark and flower of the aptly-named palo verde tree prolific to the Sonoran Desert. Most of the year, both the tree’s bark and leaves make up a monotone palette of a pale asparagus or sage green, but during spring they explode into a haze of yellow, the desert’s analog to the cherry blossom. These two primary colors are drawn from the logo and can be carried out tastefully throughout the website where bold connections to the brand make sense, while recognizing their main work is done within the logo.

The neutrals used throughout the branding are all tinted green to reflect the subtle verdancy of the wettest desert in the world. The secondary, more neutral versions of the primary branding hues are to be used where a gentler, more subtle approach to the brand. The pastel yellow makes most sense when paired with one of the darker colors in the palette, like Avocado Skin. The dull greens in the Sonoran Desert are often accompanied by the unique purple and pink (and at times yellow) of the prickly pear (nopal) cactus and its eponymous fruit (tuna). These colors should be used when a degree of color contrast is needed to draw the users attention somewhere on the page.

Official Typography Selections

Fig 3 — Official typography selections and use cases

The font Tejuela Heavy is used for the main logo text on account of its bold serifed appearance and nod to latin american architecture (and an ode to the roots of Kino’s namesake). In the heavy form, this typeface should not be used anywhere except for the logo. However, the other fonts in the family can be used for banners and other marketing materials.

Nimbus was chosen as an all-purpose font to be used in copy around the website and in email correspondence. It was chosen for clean and neutral appearance, as well as distinction from other heavily used classic sans typefaces such as Helvetica or Arial.

Accessibility

All Kino materials should meet current web accessibility standards. See https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/ for further information.

Use of Imagery

Photography should be used to convey the values and priorities of Kino as a brand:

1. Kino values fashion and the intentionality behind how each piece is used in our customers’ ensembles. Regularly-released look-books are to be a large part of how Kino communicates this priority. The look-books will feature a melange of photos depicting our pieces incorporated thoughtfully and provocatively into outfits and displayed on our models. These should be high-value productions.
2. Furthermore, our pieces should be depicted in real-world environments by real users, not necessarily photo-shoots, but legitimate adventures wherein professional photographers are also present.
3. Our brand seeks to bring a new voice to the adventure/outdoors apparel niche. We want to avoid cliche photography backdrops (we’re looking at you Joshua Tree) when there is so much underrated beauty in the American West at our disposal!

Example of Use

Fig 4 — An example marketing utilization of the brand guidelines

Previous in the series: Design Brief

Next in the series: Website Wireframes, Static + Interactive Comps

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