A recent trip to Glasgow was arranged for us to experience ‘branding’ first hand, in particular taking a look at Merchant City in the city centre. I’m somewhat familiar with Glasgow however Merchant City has always been a bit of a mystery to me, it’s been mentioned a lot however personally I’ve never known exactly what it is. Is it a full blown area? Is it a shopping district? I feel that failing to have a solid brand behind it has caused the confusion. After taking a stroll around, the entrance was very apparent in the form of a large sign hanging down from the grand architectural arch that leads you in, a scattering of lux stores & top end cafes are rife but what wasn’t so obvious was its barrier, rather than feeling like a well formed area with a set perimeter it seemed to just filter down until you weren’t so sure whether you were still in ‘Merchant City’ or not. I feel like a well put together branding campaign for the area would benefit it greatly. Whether this means more signage simply communicating whether you’ve ventured out of Merchant City or not, perhaps some sort of visual language to identify it from the rest of the city, manhole covers, plaques and/or a unique colour palette as far as signs/posters/sculptures go inside the area itself.
Starbucks
Starbucks is by no means my first choice for a caffeine top-up but I find myself there occasionally with company, as there’s a branch located right at the entrance to Merchant City we made it our first port of call. We were asked to be take note of particular stores/chains and see how they brand themselves, what kindof atmosphere do they provide and does this reflect the products they sell? While chugging down a good gallon of Americano with a dash of hot milk I realised that this particular Starbucks stop had a whole different image to those I’ve previously visited. Here in Dundee there’s a prime Starbucks store right in the city centre, glass surrounding, cosy yet modern interior with quite a long queue/collect system. The one situated at Merchant City entrance is dissimilar in a lot of ways, it seemed much more homely, tables and chairs were mismatched and splayed throughout, it also seemed to provide private little corners, nooks and window spaces which I would expect more from an obscure little independent coffee shop down a side street rather than a massive chain like Starbucks. Staff were very personable, almost mother like and the ‘Starbucks’ system was in full flow but wasn’t as overt as our one here. Of course the new (and in my opinion, improved) logo was in full swing, looking right at home on everything from the cups to the stickers on sandwiches, a bold move from the company but something to be proud of when an organisation is so established that a simple logo without type can be recognised worldwide.
