Wayne and I kinda knew each other through my old work. He's in software, and I worked on the peripheries of software. So, in some ways, this was destined to be a partnership! :'D
Wayne came to me with a passion project he'd had the inspiration to bring to life. And passion projects make me so happy, because you truly see people come alive when you help them realise a passion project. It's so, so wonderful. More people should pursue their passion projects, side note from me!
We needed a brand...
First things first: A brand.
Meerkode is a play on words, "Meer" being the Afrikaans for "more" and also a nod to Wayne's African roots and the meerkat. I wanted to mesh earthy tones, African bush, with something digital... and so, this branding was born!
What I love is that it is so simple. And it carries the brand really nicely. The little character can be used alone or dropped, but it's a nice little thing to spot when you do. Meerkode is also going to be producing a lot of shirts and swag, so having something so versatile was really important - we can use the little meerkat on the inner labels, as an embroidered mark on the side... the opportunities are endless here, which is really really great.
Extending the idea
Once we had the base of what we wanted in terms of brand, it was simply a case of finding a neat way to tie it altogether. The colours I love, because they really are such a wonderful earthy tone, and with the neon glow in yellow - which you hardly see - I believe this is really unique take on the digital aspect of the brand.
Typefaces can be really tricky, but this one came really naturally. Using the same digital lines in the logo for the main heading, we found a very simple but very powerful body text that works like a dream alongside the more complex heading font. You never want a clash, and this is far from it.
Wayne, a dream. Can't wait to build this brand with you! (pssst: we're designing a bunch of t shirts together, so watch this space!)
