Iceni Vélo
Norwich cycling club Iceni Vélo decided it was time to blow the cobwebs away and bring the visual appeal of the club bang up to date. They engaged us to undertake a full rebrand including a new logotype, club emblem and cycling kit design. With our founder Ed, a keen cyclist and Iceni member as the lead out man, we gladly accepted the challenge to deliver a winning design before the club engaged their new kit supplier.
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Iceni Vélo are a cycling club based in Norwich. Formed by a group of likeminded riders, the club takes a friendly, sociable and accessible approach to a sport which can often feel a little intimidating and elitist to the newcomer.
Iceni Vélo is a British Cycling affiliated club which means that as well as social riding, members race in regional, national and international competition for the club. Iceni also organises their own events which in the past have included road races, time trials and currently include a cyclo-cross event and an Audax, so branding would also serve as a shop front for the club.
With a kit and visual identity largely unchanged since the club began in 2011, a move to a new kit supplier presented a great opportunity to refresh the whole visual identity of the club. A full rebrand would refresh and modernise the image of the club and further broaden the appeal to a more diverse range of riders.
The logotype design was approached as an evolution of the existing logo. Simplification and elegance was the order of the day, removing tired graphic elements. We focus-grouped a selection of concepts with the club and landed on a retro/modern approach that feels timeless and adds a sense of speed and dynamism to the name. We also added the french accent to the e in Vélo, giving a nod to the eurocentric name
In a bid to expand the visual identity of the club we experimented with ideas for a logomark/roundel, which was a first for the club and required some creativity. As the club is a relatively new organisation without any heritage to fall back on, we took inspiration from the word “Iceni” , a bronze age tribe of the East Anglian region once famously led by Boudica. With little iconography surviving from the period we looked at coinage of the time which frequently bore marks of a crescent moon shape.
With a new logo it was only fitting that there was a new colourway for the new club kit.
After years of iterations of the old kit there were several colourways in use, meaning the club identity was confused and lacked uniformity. It was felt a brand new kit and colourway was a great opportunity to draw a line under the mishmash of previous versions and start afresh, while also clearly distinguishing the club on the open road and in competition.
After talking with various members the red/black colourway of the existing kit was also considered quite masculine. The old red hue also bore a close resemblance to another local cycling club which could be easily confused on the road. It was also important to create a kit that felt more modern and inclusive to suit the outlook of the club.
We designed a new jersey with a vibrant red that uses a gradient to transition to a deep navy blue, giving a look that feels more inclusive, on trend and highly visible against the green hedgerows of East Anglia.
The finished manufactured product was bolder, brighter and more eye-catching in the flesh, with the colours printed on bright white ‘lycra’ style material popping nicely. The fresh look made for a genuinely exciting new kit and for the first time in a number of years most club members bought new items. The response to the new look has been really positive with club members frequently complemented by fellow cyclists while out on the roads. Maybe it’s coincidence but club membership is on the increase at a rapid rate
