B&B Studio newly worked with Humans Being to create a sustainable packaging system for the line. Harmonized with the brand’s mindful approach, the packaging system is a simple kraft bag that takes a no-frills approach. Cutting out unnecessary materials emphasizes the brand’s genuine approach to sustainability and the usage of sustainable materials in the brand’s clothing in an understated way.
B&B studio has created the brand positioning, strategic direction, brand name, brand design and packaging for Humans Being, a new athleisure brand founded by Rita Ora. Humans Being champions sustainable materials across all its products, while delivering high-level technical performance and superstar style credentials.
Humans Thinking, Humans Doing, Humans Being
Inspired by the brand’s purposeful commitment to people and planet, B&B was keen to create a name and identity that conveyed a sense of community, team spirit and proactivity. Humans Being was the perfect solution: with the simple switch of a single letter, human beings is transformed from a descriptive noun into an active sentence, implying an egalitarian community of doers – whether that’s being active in sports or being activist around sustainability.
The brand identity brings the name to life through a simple and accessible typographic logo featuring bold upper case letterforms with a subtle nod to dynamism and movement within the M and the G. The logotype is supported by a vibrant mint green dash, a key visual asset that is able to work within the graphic identity but also establish a role as a visible brand signifier on the garments themselves.
Humans Being Stronger, Humans Being Kinder, Humans Being Together
In addition, B&B created three pillars for the brand – Stronger, Kinder, Together – to represent the brand’s philosophy, which extends from celebrating strength, protecting the planet and supporting each other. Crafted to work with the brand name, the pillars set a system for communication that extends across digital and packaging design.
The pillars are supported visually by a set of three circular icons, inspired by Rita’s smiley face tattoo. As a unit, they are accompanied by the phrase Humans Reusing, Humans Recycling, Humans Caring, Humans Being to create another signifier that can appear on clothes and labelling.
Work. Workout. Out out.
With DTC vital to the brand, B&B has created the look and feel for the website, combining intuitive online navigation and shopping tools with clear brand storytelling encompassing the founder story, environmental impact, and materials innovation, as well as the brand’s partnership with the World Land Trust.
Key to the brand’s commitment to sustainable fashion is the creation of multipurpose garments, and the collection is deliberately designed to take you from the gym to the coffee shop and beyond. Combining tone of voice with range segmentation, B&B introduced the Work/Workout/OutOut model to enable intuitive navigation across the website and highlight the 24/7 crossover nature of each garment.
B&B’s art direction for the broader brand world ensures this contemporary lifestyle is captured through candid photography spanning from more active to more relaxed moments and featuring fashion-inspired styling as well as more expected fitness shots. While sustainability is vital to the brand’s purpose and philosophy, it was important not to compromise its style credentials with more overt eco semiotics.
“Crafting an identity able to work across communications platforms but also on the garments themselves was a brilliant challenge for our team to take on,” says Jennie Potts, Associate Creative Director at B&B studio. “Seeing the brand come to life on clothes – worn by a community of humans – has been incredibly rewarding.”
Shaun Bowen, B&B Co-Founder and Creative Partner adds: “It’s important for everyone at B&B that we work with brands who are committed to doing things better. From changing perceptions around fast fashion, to actively working to preserve rainforest habitats, Humans Being is exactly the kind of brave and brilliant brand we’re proud to help create.”
