A premium bespoke project to capture the essence of a rich and charismatic brand.
The Challenge:
To bring a clear and detailed project brief to life in a way that accurately represented Avanti’s rich brand values. Delivering a product that combines quality materials and premium detailing with a sustainable story.
The Outcome:
An extensively customised notebook, branded in no less than five unique ways, achieving a high-end look and feel, sustainably.
About The Project
At the end of 2020, Project Merchandise entered into discussions with Avanti West Coast, operator of the UK’s west coast mainline railway, about a bespoke gifting project for their internal staff.
Given the company’s attention to detail when it comes to all things branding, Avanti came well prepared. We were provided a comprehensive design mock-up, a suite of assets and guidelines, and sustainability criteria to work with. Committed to delivering a cleaner, greener railway service, Avanti had strict expectations on sustainability which had to be met.
The brief called for a full-colour printed notebook, within a sleeve to protect the notebook and add a premium finish.
The Final Item
Quickly noting their desire for a low-impact, long-lasting design, we suggested replacing the notebook with a replaceable pad. Making this change would help reduce costs and waste by eliminating unnecessary material use and unify the item as one lasting gift to be used again and again.
To keep the branding opportunities a notebook cover would have offered, we included a printed tip-in page to the front of the pad.
After exploring a variety of material options, we created a full pre-production sample in Como, a soft-touch vegan leather, made in the UK using 80% recycled plastic.
The material allowed for an exciting array of branding methods including our highlight, an edge-to-edge embossed detail to the cover. Branded in a total of four positions, we even Pantone-matched an Avanti brand colour for a bespoke finish.
Project Merchandise have been a breath of fresh air within the industry and a pleasure to work with. We had a clear vision of what we wanted, with Chris and the team working hard to not just deliver but go beyond our expectations. They guided us every step of the way with honesty and solutions throughout the challenges the pandemic has thrown. The outcome has been beautiful sustainable notebooks that our people will be able to treasure.
Avanti West Coast
Create your own
Interested in exploring bespoke merchandise for your brand? Get in touch by mailing [email protected] or call us on 0203 488 7171, and our expert team will guide you through the process to deliver your perfect branded product.
