COOK-UP
COOK-UP is a not-for-profit social enterprise dedicated to nourishing early-stage food entrepreneurs, primarily from marginalised communities, to launch and scale businesses that have a transformative impact on our communities.
At the time of our engagement, COOK-UP needed a logo, brand, and some introductory materials to approach investors and to get them ready for their launch to engage with potential food entrepreneurs at the beginning of farmers’ market season. Influences we considered for the brand included folk art, “guerrilla” art, symbols of protest, and craft. We wished to emphasize a handmade, homemade, human look that contained a hint of the unusual and ultimately create a powerful and unique presence. At the same time we wanted to convey the confident helping hands that offer and receive as a metaphor for the nature of COOK-UP’s relationship to the entrepreneurs they would eventually begin to mentor. Through our exploration of these references, balancing their push and pull, we came to land on a mark that is as nurturing, warm, and playful as it is edgy and rebellious.
The colourway for COOK-UP was particularly fun to develop. Sampling from the kitchen created a lively and sumptuous array that excite the eye and ground the palette. Hues we refer to as “Fig”, “Pomegranate”, “Turmeric”, and “Paprika” are effective for highlighting and call-outs, while “Olive”, and “Concord” provide a warm, reassuring backdrop.
The landing page we produced needed to function as an explainer of the mentorship process for potential entrepreneurs, as well as highlight COOK-UP’s Mission, Vision, and Values for any visiting potential investors.
This is a fun brand with many mix-and-matchable elements to use across a campaign. The first phase of their funding allowed us to create booth materials for the farmers market and some apparel, as well as printed marketing material.
COOK-UP continues to support start-up food entrepreneurs from their dedicated facility in downtown Windsor, Ontario.
What We Did: Logo, Branding, Web Landing Page & Print Collateral
Project Status: Launched
