Celebrating The Inclusivity And Playfulness Of The Tech Unicorn Brand Through Wayfinding And Spatial Graphic Design
Startling Brands helps Contentful to create a three-dimensional brand experience in its new 8,215 m2 Berlin office
BERLIN, August 25, 2022—Startling Brands, a Berlin-based branding and design firm, announced today that it had completed its extensive wayfinding and environmental graphic design project for the Berlin-based tech unicorn, Contentful.
As one of the most valued German software companies, Contentful has experienced accelerated growth, resulting in the need to translate its brand into a large-scale office environment. Startling Brands’ role was to help Contentful extend the concepts of inclusivity, playfulness, and tech brand maturity into a masterpiece of an agile workspace, designed by the toi toi toi creative studio in the newly erected building spreading across five floors in the historic neighborhood of Berlin Gesundbrunnen.
Contentful’s new Berlin office has over 120 rooms leading from narrow corridors. Startling Brands designed an elevated wayfinding system to help employees quickly navigate the space. “We used elevated color-coded pictograms for meeting rooms, toilets, tea kitchens, and other specialty rooms to enable employees to quickly and easily recognize the room’s function from a distance,” says Mario Dzurila, Creative Director of Startling Brands. “Our acrylic plexiglass signage system follows the shape language of the interior and makes the workspace more inclusive with Braille wayfinding. Combined with 3D printed arrows, floor indicators, and custom signage such as the levitating IT Help Desk sign, it embodies Contentful’s playful visual identity,” he adds.
Across the five floors, the new Contentful office celebrates content. Startling Brands’ theming and naming concepts pay homage to trailblazing scientists, engineers, artists, and authors. They highlight humanity’s most famous content landmarks and celebrate well-known Berlin places and institutions where Berliners get to immerse themselves in cultural content.
“We delivered Contentful wayfinding and environmental design application solutions that were in synergy with the interior design and aligned with Contentful’s brand values,” says Mario Dzurila. “Our solution has made the workspace more inclusive and helped create an inspiring environment while staying true to the playful nature of the Contentful brand.”
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