Howard Milton rebrands Cheltenham Literature Festival

Howard Milton, founder and chairman of London-based branding consultancy Smith & Milton, has masterminded a new identity for the Cheltenham Literature Festival, which opens today.

The identity brings together the four strands of the Cheltenham festivals: jazz, science, music and literature.

The brief was to build a collective vehicle that would reflect all four festivals and manage the identities of the sponsors.

Under Milton’s direction, design for the branding and the literature festival’s communication were carried out by Bristol-based consultancy Tijuana.

Milton says, ‘Cheltenham Festivals are among the UK’s most innovative exponents of contemporary arts and culture, yet were glazed with an inaccurate provincial persona.

‘The new “spike” identity acts as both a challenge to that impression and as a banner to unify the four festivals.’

Smith & Milton, whose clients include Travelex, Natwest and PPP Healthcare, also provided strategic consultation to give the festivals’ brand a long-term, consistent presence.

The festivals draw more than 135 000 people every year. This year’s literature festival, established in 1949, will feature appearances by authors Fay Weldon and Toni Morrison.

The literature festival runs until 19 October.