Approach

Research

To execute the two brands, Block Club conducted extensive market research to gauge public perception of the building’s personality, legacy, and curbside appeal. We visited highly trafficked public spaces, including popular recreation sites and area farmers markets, to target likely future visitors of the hotel’s amenities and restaurant. This would prove essential to understanding how the branding would ultimately speak to the promise of local re-energization the hotel operators were looking for. Our team also visited and researched influential hotels and hospitality concepts around the country to study emerging trends in identity design and branded guest experiences.

Positioning

In our positioning of the brand, we focused on the building’s architectural legacy and cultural significance rather than its origins in healthcare. We also prioritized the resort’s offerings such as its location within the popular Elmwood Village neighborhood, the conference center’s cutting-edge technology, and the property’s roots as a self-sustaining campus.

Naming

To arrive at names for both the hotel/conference center and restaurant, we explored a number of themes and directions. Ideation sessions manifested dozens of categories of keywords, terms, phrases, colloquialisms, and historical references. The name that resulted, Hotel Henry, pays homage to the building’s architect and features both a nod to naming trends and the H.H. syntax of Richardson’s name. Meanwhile, the name’s descriptor—Urban Resort & Conference Center—suggests a new kind of modern urban hotel concept, marrying the campus’s serene, pastoral grounds with the bustling city neighborhood that surrounds it.

The restaurant name—100 Acres, The Kitchens at Hotel Henry—is rooted in the dimensions of the campus’s original footprint, which was initially devoted to farmland. The 100 Acres culinary team went so far as to revive the campus’s original vegetable gardens to yield produce for the restaurant’s local-first menus.

Visual Identity

The hotel and conference center’s visual identity straddles the same line between classic and current. It features custom modern serif lettering countered with a light, crisp sans serif supporting typeface. The diagonal crossbar in the signature H speaks to the building’s cornerstone towers, the most widely recognized element of its edifice. The identity’s clean lines, comforting character, and simple sophistication is felt in both the custom lettering and refreshing yellow accent.

For 100 Acres, we developed a visual brand identity fit to serve as an attractor for guests and locals alike. Original artwork by local painter Jason Seeley, portraying the fresh produce and natural ingredients that characterized the restaurant’s farm-to-table cuisine, adorn the menus, website, and other print and digital pieces.

Collateral + Interiors

We also developed print collateral for use throughout the hotel/conference center as well as for marketing efforts. To inform interior design decisions, we collaborated with New York City-based Deborah Berke Partners, bringing the brand to life throughout the physical space.

Brand Introduction

A brand introduction campaign included media outreach, an animated video, and a website to unveil the brand and feed the public’s enduring interest in this headline-making redevelopment. Brand standards for both the hotel/conference center and restaurant were developed to guide the client’s internal marketing team on daily implementation, helping to ensure consistent implementation throughout the lives of the brands.