Roundel branding for Poole complex

Roundel has been appointed to brand a retail and residential development in Dorset as the site’s previous occupier, Poole Pottery, confirms it is looking at its corporate identity.

Roundel is creating a master brand and sub-brands for The Quays development, which will be unveiled in the summer. Meanwhile, Frost Design and Frances Sorrell are working on Poole’s identity. Sorrell is a consultant ‘creative director’ on the project and will be looking at product design while Frost Design is looking at graphics, says a Poole Pottery spokeswoman.

The retail and residential project, worth over £100 000 in design fees alone, was awarded to Roundel after a credentials pitch before Christmas 2001 against RLA, Walkers, Blair Fowles and New Creative Concept, says a spokesman for Poole Pottery owner Orb Estates.

The development, in Poole’s quayside, will transform the former Poole Pottery complex. The Roundel brand and sub-brands will be applied to areas including a guildhall and a yacht haven.

The development has to appeal to a wide audience of retailers, tourists and home-buyers, so the identity had to have a strong structure and long-term vision, says Roundel director Tony Howard.

The consultancy will be conducting research into local culture and history, working with the local tourist board to ensure it reflects the ‘heritage and personality’ of the area, Howard says.

‘[The development] is a real boost to Poole,’ he adds.

The identity will be applied to advertising and marketing materials as well as signage and stationery. Phase one of the development is scheduled to open in March 2003.

Orb Estates has relocated Poole Pottery to a larger site a mile away, but a retail outlet will remain at the quayside site.

The identity and product design work is understood to be in its early stages, and ‘nothing will launch before June or July’, adds the spokeswoman.