Union Sq. Partnership (USP) has unveiled a brand new model id created by The Working Meeting, as a part of a broader mission to reinvigorate certainly one of New York’s most iconic districts and place it as a cultural and business drive within the metropolis’s post-pandemic panorama.
The rebrand comes at a time when city districts throughout the globe are rethinking how they appeal to footfall, foster neighborhood, and compete with the pull of on-line life. For Union Sq. – lengthy generally known as a civic crossroads and hub of exercise – the problem was to unify its voice and higher replicate its evolving objective.
“The brand new branding marks a pivotal second for USP because it sharpens its mission to foster financial progress, improve neighborhood life, and guarantee Union Sq. stays a vibrant cultural hub,” says Victoria Ortiz-Russell, Director of Advertising and marketing and Occasions at USP.
The Working Meeting was tasked with creating a model that would deliver cohesion to USP’s communications, replicate the character of the neighbourhood, and have interaction audiences starting from residents and companies to guests and metropolis officers.
“Union Sq. is the beating coronary heart of downtown, filled with power, contradictions, and character,” says Jolene Delisle, founding father of The Working Meeting. “We needed the model id to replicate that pulse.”
That pulse is now channelled via a refreshed id system that mixes a refined wordmark with a daring color palette, dynamic typography, and bespoke illustrations that seize the world’s multicultural persona. The system is designed to be versatile, scalable, and rooted in place, stretching throughout every thing from lamppost banners to digital belongings.
“It is a new language that helps us join extra meaningfully with our neighborhood,” Victoria says.
Alongside the visible belongings, The Working Meeting additionally delivered an entire model technique and verbal id, giving USP a clearer strategy to articulate its values and talk its influence. The rebrand brings readability and cohesion to a beforehand fragmented set of messages, serving to USP converse with a stronger and extra constant voice.
A key perception driving the work was Union Sq.’s position as a connector and a bodily house that bridges commerce, tradition, and neighborhood in one of many world’s busiest cities. The id leans into that place whereas avoiding the entice of making an attempt to be every thing to everybody. As an alternative, the technique centered on specificity: highlighting the distinctive quirks, power, and those who make Union Sq. what it’s.
It additionally helped that The Working Meeting did not must look far for inspiration – their studio relies in Union Sq. itself.
“Our studio relies in Union Sq., so this undertaking feels private,” Jolene provides. “One in all our core focuses is to assist manufacturers evolve to understand their full potential. The truth that we are able to do that with a model we’re in contact with each day is further particular.”
The results of the collaboration is a model that does not simply polish the floor however offers a framework for long-term neighborhood engagement and place-based storytelling. It is vibrant, characterful, and assured, identical to the sq. itself.
“This rebrand helps us higher talk who we’re, what we stand for, and the influence we’re making,” Victoria says.
For different neighbourhoods and civic districts navigating comparable questions on id, footfall, and relevance, USP’s transformation presents a compelling case research. It exhibits that with the fitting artistic companion and just a little native perception, place branding may be extra than simply banners and buzzwords.
