The Dovecote Inn is an award winning traditional village pub restaurant in Laxton, England’s last remaining medieval farming village. Serving excellent food made from locally sourced ingredients with a stylish, contemporary edge in contrast with its surroundings, The Dovecote Inn punches well above its weight among local pubs and restaurants, but their success comes predominantly from regular local customers and word of mouth within a limited catchment area.
Over decades, the pub had grown its reputation organically with no consistent or cohesive branding to identify it among its competition, or to communicate its offer. The pub had also evolved over the years from a simple, traditional country pub serving Sunday lunch to a well-regarded gastropub serving a stylish gourmet menu and offering luxurious bed and breakfast accommodation. In order to grow their business and build a reputation further afield, the owners required a professional visual identity to match the standard of their food and hospitality.
The new logo uses a stylised feather, linking directly to the pub’s name. The feather rests gently on a surface, giving a sense of warmth and comfort, and also nodding subtly towards the new accommodation offering (a luxurious feather pillow). Primary and secondary fonts with slender serifs strike an elegant visual balance reflecting the pub’s contemporary menu and its traditional rural surroundings. The logo was designed intentionally without colour, allowing it to adapt to specific events and new trends and tastes.
Two simple three-word straplines were created to accompany the logo: “Eat. Drink. Stay.” clearly communicates the three parts of the business, highlighting the new B&B element along with the traditional food and drink offer. “Relax. Unwind. Enjoy.” was created to capture the laid-back, welcoming atmosphere. The straplines are intentionally short to ensure legibility on signs that would typically be viewed from a moving car.
Freshly branded collateral and marketing materials are being rolled out now, including events brochures, menus, gift vouchers and uniforms.
