A few months ago I stumbled across this video and got pretty excited. The coworking space the Focus Lab office is in had been looking to put on an event to engage members, and I realized this was exactly what we needed. I shared the link with a few people, and we were off and running with plans for the ThincSavannah Egg Drop.

Over a few afternoon beers on a Friday in April, a crack staff hatched the egg drop plan. The event would be timed to occur in conjunction with ThincSavannah’s second anniversary, and would also be a fundraiser for a local charity. We set up some rules and scoring criteria so we could determine a winner when the eggs started to fall. Ultimately, we decided scores would be based on egg breakage, style and accuracy of the vessel.

Since the event was my idea, and because of my background, I had some pressure to deliver when competition day came around. In the days leading up to the drop, I planned, built and finally finished the glorious rocket ship vessel you see in the pictures. I designed it to have a Styrofoam nose cone to absorb much of the shock, and a safe immobile space inside the body to protect the egg from breakage. I thought this design would allow me to be accurate because, basically, I made a large dart! And as for style, come on, it’s a rocket.

Competition on the day of the event was fierce. We had 11 entries which raised $150 for the local charity. It also meant there were 11 vessels being thrown out a third-story window toward the target in the alley below. The video below has a great recap of what transpired. The contest also made the evening news on three channels, and the next day’s morning paper. We rocked out!

When the dust settled and the scores were tabulated, my rocket proved to be the strongest of all entries. Scoring 95 out of a possible 100 points, the rocket protected the egg on two separate drops, took first place in the style competition and nearly hit the center ring of the target on the second drop. Focus Lab’s Matt Yow also had a successful day as part of the team that took second in the overall competition.

Not a shabby day at the office =)

We need help. Not the kind where you call someone because you're worried about us. The kind where we have awesome projects and you want to be a part of them. Read along and see if you think that might be you.

About a year ago we sent out a beacon for some part time help in both design and development. We added to our team some fine individuals who really help make Focus Lab what we are. We again need help with both design and development. Here's the lowdown.

Designer

I will make this simple. Are you a rockstar and want to work with a great company on various cool projects? If so we want you! The gist:

We are in need of designer with very high level skills. A team member that has strong skills in both web design, UI and ideally branding. We are going to be extremely selective based on the following criteria:

1. Strength of work - Web + UI, branding is a bonus
2. Availability
3. Ability to prove efficiency at working remotely
4. Compatibility with a team atmosphere

Here are some things you will be throwing down:

• Designing large scale websites with various level of complexities
• UI work including mobile platform
• Possibly leading new branding projects

Designers must be able to say yes to most the following:

• Do you consider yourself creative?
• Is Web Design / UI one of your biggest strengths?
• Are you comfortable with tight deadlines?
• Have you worked remotely before?

You must have the following:

• (Goes without saying but) Extensive knowledge in Adobe Creative Suite - Ps Ai
• A portfolio that we can review ( Web format a must )
• Ability to work collaboratively
• Great communication skills
• Tiger-like work ethic

Developer

We're looking for a development team leader. Hit us up if this describes you:

• You can ask the right questions to properly determine the scope of a project
• You are comfortable helping other devs on the team when a problem arises
• You have an encouraging attitude to yourself, team member and clients
• You're comfortable working with large datasets and moving data from one place to another
• You're well versed in PHP, MySQL & Javascript blah blah etc etc

Developers should be able to say yes to most the following:

• Do you appreciate the value of a team over the value of self?
• Have you successfully led a development team through multiple projects? (Examples would be great)
• Have you already scoured the source code of this website to see if you'd want to work with us?
• Do you version control your to-do lists?
• Are you generally an awesome person?

All Applicants

We are looking for 30 (or so) hours per week at this point in time. Ideally this will grow into a long-term relationship so we'll be pretty picky. Please respond with statements of your experience, expertise, enthusiasm and wage requirements to i-am-awesome@focuslabllc.com. Developers should also include their GitHub profile (or equivalent).

We were approached by Sun 'n' Fun Rentals to refresh their brand and redefine the personality of a business that has been in operation for 30 years. The look they were utilizing was tired and lacked cohesion due to the addition of elements over the years. They were in need of a team that had a true understanding of their market and the creative talent to deliver on all fronts.

Concept & Direction

The goal of the project was to strike a balance between a fun, carefree beach experience and the professional, reliable personality Sun ‘n’ Fun is known for. While tourists are the primary target audience, the brand also needed to resonate with natives of Martha's Vineyard due to the seasonal nature of tourist customers. Visually, we needed to unify the scooter, bicycle and Jeep rentals that comprise Sun ‘n’ Fun’s core services, as a clear, singular brand. It was also very important to not create an unrecognizable departure from the previous identity, in order to maintain the existing brand equity they had built over the first 30 years. We did not want returning clients to feel like this was a completely different company, but instead, an improved version of the company they had used for years.

The Mark

The direction for the final mark came out of an exhaustive process of first defining the brand’s personality including a series of icons that represented the key aspects of Sun ‘n’ Fun’s business. The simple and playful nature of these icons helped define the brand’s overall voice, and once they were in place, the rest of the branding came into focus. By the end of the process, we'd developed a dynamic logo with multiple layouts for distinct applications. Since each icon is representative of a key aspect of the business, the different versions can be utilized on a “best-fit” basis, depending on the medium. In addition, the icons can be removed completely if the execution calls for a focus on the company as a whole.

One of the most difficult icons to create was an identifiable contour of Martha's Vineyard that could scale easily, while maintaining a few detailed elements. After several iterations of the island, we finally landed on one that felt right and is now the lead icon for the brand.

Typography

The typography chosen for this brand is Hoefler & Frere-Jones' slab serif font Vitesse for the primary mark, and House Industries' Neutraface for the secondary supporting type. Tertiary and copy text is Eames Century Modern, also by House Industries. Each font carries its own strength, while maintaining the personality and ease of the brand. The fonts' neutrality represents the brand’s playful nature, while still presenting a professional image. The foundries’ descriptions of each font helps demonstrate why they work to represent a fun brand based on historic Martha’s Vineyard:

Vitesse
"Engineered for responsive handling and a sporty ride, Vitesse is confident and stylish in any situation." — H&FJ
Neutraface
Geometric and architecturally imbued as a steadfast yet buoyant typeface no matter the circumstance.
Eames Century Modern
"Eames Century Modern is a typographic workhorse that honors the Eames aesthetic while offering unprecedented functionality." — House Industries

Color

Initially, color seemed to be a simple decision. Several colors were chosen early in the process, and remained on the table while we worked through the mark and typeface layouts. As the final mark was being refined, and colors were becoming priority, we decided that four colors should be reduced to just two or three colors in order to unify the brand and the multiple icon representations the brand now allowed for.

This left us with a worn heather grey/blue combined with a distinct complimentary yellow and rounded out with a subtle sky blue. The primary heather blue and toned yellow carry the bulk of the brand, while the lighter blue reinforces it. These colors were similar enough to the previous branding so as not to confuse existing clients, but different enough to communicate a new, revitalized look. The muted tones of the color palette are meant to reflect the history of the company and the atmosphere of the island itself.

Final Product

Future applications of this new look are limitless. With a simple color palette, clear typeface selections and a broad collection of service icons, this brand is set up for success. Although it was not a defined goal in the beginning, we also ended up with a solution that lends itself to customer-focused merchandising, like t-shirts, stickers and more. While you don’t often see folks wearing a shirt from a car-rental company, the new branding has a “souvenir” quality to it. Clients can now remember their trip to the Vineyard by leaving with a fun shirt or sticker set, and help spread the word about Sun ‘n’ Fun. If you are interested in some swag of your own, feel free to email don@sunnfunrentals.com

We had a great time working on this project and the client now has a complete identity system to move forward with. We are now looking forward to overhauling their website and watching their continued success for the next 30 years.

Please leave us a comment below and let us know your thoughts.