Chilango

‘i-am’ are pleased to announce a delicious project currently in development – Chilango is a fast and fresh Mexican chain concept, where customers can build their own gourmet burritos, tacos, salads and other meals from the freshest ingredients. Each meal is individually prepared to your taste, right before your eyes. ‘i-am’ were called upon to generate a new name (‘Chilango’) and to develop the brand’s ‘DNA’ to ensure its personality reflected both the best of modern Mexican cuisine and urban culture with Latino fire and a lust for life. ‘i-am’ also created a new interior concept that captured the true essence of cool urban living, offering customers a choice of either dynamic dining or fast paced takeaway. Watch this space for news on the launch of Chilango… sign up HERE for updates straight to your inbox. For further information on ‘i-am’s work with Chilango, e-mail info@i-amonline.com

Food Inc.

The restyle of department store Whiteley’s in Bayswater, west London continues with the opening of a new destination food hall on the ground floor. A cross between a premium supermarket and a farmers’ market , Food Inc. consists of 16 ’stalls’ including a glittering fresh fish counter, a cabinet of iced cupcakes, a patisserie and charcuterie.

Described as ‘Borough Market without the muddy wellies’, the design and branding of Food Inc. is clean and vibrant, with each stall generously spaced to allow a relaxed stroll between zones. This is the kind of customer experience that ‘i-am’ champions. The branding is clear and coherent, and the arrangement of stalls allows easy navigation. And then there’s the food. Sourced by a Head Chef as opposed to a Retail Manager, Food Inc.’s point of difference is in it’s restaurant approach to food retail. Visit www.food-inc.com. Food Inc. Whiteley’s Department Store, Queensway, London W2

Chic and Basic

Reported straight from the ‘i-am’ team in Barcelona, this article on the hotel Chic & Basic caught our eye, because of the brand’s all-encompassing customer experience. Here’s a clipping of the article – visit the ‘i-am’ Barcelona Blog for more…

Chic & Basic is cool and perfect! Cool, in the sense that there’s a nice harmony with the classic architecture of the old building combined with modern architecture and furnishings. Perfect, in the sense that everything – and I mean everything – has been considered here. This is how a brand should work.

It all about YOU when you stay at Chic & Basic. From the staff who are discrete and attentive, cute soap packaging with great copywriting, even lollipops in your welcome pack… Fabulous!

This is a great example of a brand who have considered every stage of their customer journey, carrying the brand values through from interior design and packaging to staff uniforms and training.
Visit: www.chicandbasic.com and ‘i-am’ Barcelona

Revamp Fashion

Unique fashion doesn’t normally go hand-in-hand with a conscience, until now…
This unique project grabbed our attention as soon as it came into the ‘i-am’ studio. Newly-launched fashion brand Revamp sources emerging design talent to create trendy, sustainable and environmentally-friendly garments and accessories from clothes donated to Cancer Research UK charity shop outlets. Revamp called upon ‘i-am’ to create a bold brand logo (see image above) incorporating the ideas behind their visionary brand. The finished mark is strong and distinctive, and of course works fabulously well on Revamp’s eco-friendly branded clothes-hangers.

Get your hands on these unique pieces yourself at www.revampfashion.co.uk or at the Marylebone outlet of Cancer Research UK… and don’t hold back, half the proceeds go back into the charity.

Visit: Cancer Research UK, 24 Marylebone High Street, London W1 (nearest tube: Baker St. / Bond Street)

Domus

‘i-am’ are pleased to be working with Domus, one of the UK’s leading tile brands, to prepare a series of brand enhancement ideas designed to move the existing brand forward and ahead of the competition. Five years ago ‘i-am’ created a new Domus identity and vibrant brand personality that translated to all areas of their business, including branded binders, sample cards and signage. ‘i-am’ also created the ‘Surface’ sub-brand targeting the booming home market. Now, to help maintain Domus’s edge on the competition, ‘i-am’ are in the process of refreshing and extending the look and feel of the brand to keep them ahead – adding new design elements and devices. The team also looked at the ‘Brand Architecture’: the actual structure of the branding and how the company uses their mark. Visit: www.domustiles.com
Above left: The Battersea showroom for Domus sub-brand ‘Surface’. Designed by ‘i-am’ associates, it features a 26-metre long spiralling entrance.
For more info on this project, contact ‘i-am’ here: info@i-amonline.com

Chanel’s Art Container

‘I want to be part of what’s happening’ Coco Chanel once said, so no doubt she would be proud of this revolutionary travelling art project comissioned by Karl Lagerfeld for the Chanel brand. The jaw-droppingly sexy Zaha Hadid-designed structure features twenty exhibits from prolific international artists, who were given a brief to create works based around Chanel’s back catalogue of iconic handbags. This combination of an international premium brand, a visionary architect and a team of celebrated artists has created one of the most magical luxury brand experiences for years, with a trip to the pavilion likened by one visitor to being trapped inside a lavish Chanel commercial! Now that’s got to be worth a try. Here at ‘i-am’ we’re very much looking forward to the art container’s touchdown in the Big Smoke later this year…

Mobile Art will travel from Hong Kong to Tokyo, New York, Los Angeles, London, Moscow and Paris over the course of two years. Keep up to date here: www.chanel-mobileart.com

D.L. & Company

‘Modern Alchemists and Purveyors of Curious Goods’, Los Angeles-based D.L. & Co. “was born of the desire to bring objects of opulence and beauty to those who yearn for the uncommon and exquisite.” Well that’s what the eerily tranquil website states anyway. D.L. & Co offers a unique and consistent brand experience at every stage of the shopping journey. From the funereal website to the luxury packaging, there are surprising details at every turn.

Visit: www.dlcompany.com to shop for luxury bespoke perfumes, intricately packaged scented candles and some particularly macabre chocolates (above). Premium gift-shopping has never been so gothic.

Sake No Hana

From Alan Yau, the influential restaurateur behind Wagamama and Hakkasan, comes a new Japanese fine-dining experience Sake No Hana (’sake flower’). The interior of this Modernist building in St. James has been well and truly transformed with gloss black escalators, Shinto arches and bamboo forests by award-winning Japanese architect Kengo Kuma. Alan Yau is said to be the man who ‘made dim-sum fashionable’ and his restaurant brands are responsible for setting a standard for Oriental restaurants, with each offering a consistent and high-quality brand experience. Reservations: 020 7925 8988