31/03/22
Spinach Branding wins two awards for Barking Riverside at Transform Awards Europe
Branding
Spinach Branding has picked up two awards at the 2022 Transform Awards Europe, for the best brand identity for the property sector, and brand strategy and architecture commendation for our work with Barking Riverside London. The annual awards celebrates brand development, reputation management and rebranding. Our creative director Adam Thomas says of the win: ‘Over two years of hard work is being recognised on such a big stage.’
Barking Riverside London is one of Europe’s most ambitious and exciting current urban developments, anchored on the principle of placemaking to mean designing and building in partnership with place and people. Its mission is to provide a platform where existing and new residents can develop an authentic and inclusive place to live and work, and one that ultimately encourages opportunities for all. Spinach has been working closely with the team at Barking Riverside Limited (BRL) to help realise this vision.
‘Central to the brand development was the need to collectively create a new placemaking brand model that made sense of the complicated relationship between place and the corporate entity,’ says Spinach branding director Leigh Banks. ‘Resolving this unique challenge ensured the team’s success in delivering a brand fit for the scale and ambition of Barking Riverside.’
The mixed-use scheme is seeing the construction of over 10,000 new homes, as well as commercial spaces open for businesses and retail from the Barking area and the wider London communities. Plans include new schools, healthcare and leisure facilities, civic spaces and public parks, as well as a Thames riverside nature walkway — much of which has already been completed. What’s more, the new Barking Riverside overground railway and Uber Boat by Thames Clippers links the area directly to central London and beyond.
Placemaking has been fundamental to the brand strategy for Barking Riverside. It has informed everything — from the development masterplan to residential and commercial design, communication with residents and the wider public, and with every touchpoint, signage and messaging reinforcing the value. Our work has also involved building a new website to communicate the project and its development with the Barking community, as well as creating an advertising campaign for the development to be rolled out early this year.
One of the inspiring initiative which really speaks volumes about this project was commissioned the local artist, Emmanuel Oreyeni. Last year he created an original artwork for The Wilds, the new ecological centre envisages as a community hub with workshops and events, co-working areas and a café run by Coffee:Works — a co-operative business created by local residents.. The artwork responds to Barking Riverside and its location on the banks of the river Thames in East London. It is a direct discourse on our human relationship with nature.
Oreyeni writes of the concept behind the project: ‘Take care of nature and nature will take care of you. We know who Mother Nature is, but we don’t recognise her despite the fact that she is talking to us every day. We’re just too busy cutting down trees, less oxygen, more contribution to climate change… When designing the pieces of artwork, I didn’t want to overcomplicate the design because as simple as nature is, it’s also very complicated. Throughout the design, you will see her footprint. Black and white is the most powerful message of all but when primary and secondary colour is introduced, the true character is revealed.’
Image of Emmanuel Oreyeni © Jimmy Lee for BRL; Barking Riverside branding and branding and advertising work for BRL © Spinach Branding.
Spinach Branding is a specialist branding agency based in London. We work with established businesses and start-ups around the world to build and refine their brands. See how we work and get in touch to discuss your brand.
