Established in Beirut in 1999 and recently expanding to Dubai, WonderEight (W8) is a regional design agency with practices that range from brand creation, design consultancy, above & below the line campaigns, marketing strategy, online and ambient media. The agency also designs and develops websites and interactive solutions, online user experiences, animation, apps and games.Here’s a brief highlight on six branding projects the W8 team has recently developed.

• Logma (Dubai)

Logma is a newly opened restaurant in Dubai serving modernized Khaleeji and Emirati dishes in an urbanized, trendy setting. Wanting to appeal both to locals and expats, WonderEight created an identity that reflects the Khaleeji culture using bold, colorful patterns inspired by the artisanal work of the region. Warm and sandy colors and visual references based on the magnificent nature of the Khaleeji countries; camels, horses, fish, falcons and palm leaves are hinted in every corner of the restaurant to make sure it’s a complete trip of the senses.

• Shish Beureg (Lebanon)

Shish for Lebanese grills and Beureg for Armenian specialties, Shish Beureg is a QSR with a fresh take on both cuisines. The place was designed inside and out to reflect a fast, urban and healthful identity. Starting with the logotype which was drawn based on Armenian letters, backed with the visual patterns inspired by the food offering, the restaurant’s brand sets the tone for a unique, trendy experience. Photography being the main selling point of any QSR, special care was put into every setting in order to convey a street food experience that is spontaneous, rich and mouthwatering. The chosen tone of voice adds strength to the identity through mixing between Lebanese and Armenian slang reflecting the convivial and fun aspects of both cultures.

• Beirut Street Kitchen (London)

Beirut Street Kitchen is a small Lebanese restaurant café in Richmond, London, offering Beiruti specialties served in freshly oven-baked pitas. WonderEight started out the branding process by choosing a straightforward name, which helps the brand make contact with its customers with minimal introductions. They backed it up by a visual identity that is inspired by the rich cultural mix found in the streets of Beirut and, with the help of the interior designer, made sure the identity and history of Beirut was reflected while retaining a modern and urban edge to it. The combination of the place’s delicious wraps and honest personality has made it one of the most popular places in Richmond. Among its loyal customers you will find the likes of Scarlett Johanson, Robert Downey Jr, and Christ Hemsworth! The restaurant was shortlisted
for the 2014 Restaurant & Bar Design Awards in London.

• Phil & Joe (Beirut)

Phil&Joe is a boutique BarberShop, designed to cater to the high standards of a real man, living in a modern world. The interior atmosphere was designed to revive classic men’s barbershops while the branding was carefully thought out to take every customer back to old times where the barbershop was considered a tiny haven for all gentlemen to relax and get away from life’s pressures. Vintage drawings, a black and white color palette, macho quotes by famous writers, vintage linen photo prints on the walls and typical patterned B&W marble flooring all come together to bring every man the perfect setting for a “good old-fashioned shave”.

• Kris Kros Lebanon (Dubai)

After having created a full-fledged experience for Kris Kros in Dubai, WonderEight was approached by the client to design a Lebanese version of Kris Kros serving authentic Lebanese street food, super snack style. WonderEight re-created the Beirut street food experience by putting extra attention to every detail. The fries box and the aluminum foil wrapping paper mimic the packaging of any proud snack in Beirut. The menu looks like a Lebanese passport and promises to take you on a wild trip of the senses. Vintage Lebanese stamps were used as a main branding element, whether in small on the wet napkins or fully blown up and drawn on the walls of the interior.

• Ocean Spray (Middle East)

Ocean Spray has been a successful product since the day it was introduced. But its market share was niche: it was adopted by A and A+ consumers only. So we had to create a campaign that talks to a wider audience. We based the campaign on an Instant-Win Promotion. We created a Slot Machine game app: simple, instant, addictive! The revolutionary idea: bringing the game to the people. Other than creating the game on Playcranberry.com and Facebook, we wanted to make sure everyone could play, and the online medium wasn’t enough. So the game went mobile: promoters were equipped with cranberry-branded Ipads and transformed the promotion into an ambient, interactive experience. Following the success of the activation campaigns, Ocean Spray was able to increase brand awareness by 10 folds and market share by 200%, which led to great opportunities to create TV commercials, radio campaigns with national and regional reach.