Logo design contest for Leeds - Isolation log part 4

I seldom (practically never) take part in the contest and for a good reason(most of them are just glorified versions of spec work) but this time I saw a glimmer of potential and decided to enter. The identity contest was triggered by the announcement by Channel 4 of HQ relocation to Leeds and Leeds City Council was looking to create a marketing campaign to raise the city’s profile.

Full disclosure: Even though I didn’t get past the first phase I think my idea is worth sharing and would be an amazing project to complete.

The brief summary

To create an identity for Leeds which:
-We are all proud of
-Which organically grows and becomes engrained in the city and our culture
-Feels natural and authentic
-Can be adapted for various campaigns moving forward, e.g. to create a marketing campaign /toolkit for Leeds City Council to raise the profile of our city in London

Target Audience
-Creative & digital sectors primarily
-Professionals working within the sector
-Both in Leeds (we need to be proud of our identity and for everybody to buy into it) and outside of Leeds (to attract new talent and businesses in)

So as you can see the main focus here was to create a flexible identity that will grant space for growth and ease of use without compromising the consistency. For that reason, the approach to tackle this design had to be different than the usual business logo process. We are talking about multifaceted campaigns that will present Leeds as a place that not only gives an opportunity for a great career but also is an amazing area to live in. In my view, the only approach that would support this challenge would be a visual identity system rather than a standard visual identity.

Instead of creating a singular logo, my proposition was to create a bespoke font that would allow customization depending on the subject that is promoted. The core of the identity was going to be Leeds of all that can be used as a standalone general logotype or with an addition of suffix can become subject-specific. For example, Leeds of all creatives, Leeds for all music, Leeds of all art and so on.

As I mentioned at the beginning this was just a beginning of the process and a lot was still to be discovered in this project.