Throwback Thursday | ChaTo

Hello friends,
I haven't done a Throwback Thursday in quite a long time, so I figured today would be a good time to get back into it. Unlike, some previous versions of this post, I won't be redesigning anything, but instead releasing a new design that has been floating in my head for quite some time. Today, I decided to return to the ChaTo brand and expand on what I developed 3 years ago.

For those that don't know, ChaTo is a boutique retailer specializing in Japanese loose tea, ceramics, and gifts exported from business' all across the country to their location in San Francisco. Previously, I created the wordmark for their brand, which is still proudly being used today.

I think this logo is quite nice, but I thought it lacked the flexible use a self-contained image might have especially when it comes to branding. When I consider the type of enterprise ChaTo actually is, the image of ceramics and tea isn't always clear even though there are elements within the present design that express that. Unfortunately, third party individuals wouldn't likely notice these subtlties and often need imagery to be more obvious. After re-evaluating the current wordmark from this perspective, I decided to go with a design that was a bit more straightforward but remained in-step with the previous design.

The idea was to create a secondary logo that could live harmoniously alongside my previous design. In order to test this idea, I mocked up some business cards in which this new design is used as a watermark on the back side of the card.

What do you think? Do you think the wordmark works well in communicating the business practice on its own? What designs should I revisit next time? Leave your thoughts in the comments below. As always, don't forget to like and share this post~

Until next time,
Peace