Wausau, Wisconsin

Welcome home. You belong here.

The objective for this project was to redesign & ultimately re-envision the logo for the town of Wausau, Wisconsin. The population of the town has been experiencing a surge of growth in recent years and due to this, creating a new identity that can help create a sense of community between new and existing residents is vital for its continued growth and prosperity.

Logo, social media postings and physical items such as posters, apparel, and stickers produced.

Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe InDesign

Lead artist and designer

Role

Objective

Deliverables

Production Year

January / February 2024

Tools / Software

The Problem

As the town of Wausau has seen rapid population growth and a burgeoning youth, it is in dire need of effective branding to help the community identify with and feel welcomed within. Creating a logo that can be used universally for merchandise and branding, and that can be easily identified is crucial in the pursuit of this goal to help unite all areas of the community, whether they be new or old.

The pre-existing logo for the town of Wausau, Wisconsin feels dated and jagged. It doesn’t feel like it has kept up with modern design trends, nor does it have the charm of a historic or classic logo. This can prove to be problematic for a town that has been rapidly growing over the years, and seeking to establish a strong community within its population.

S.W.O.T. Analysis

Existing logo clearly communicates the town name and displays the downtown skyline that many within the town may be already familiar with. Recognizable, and provides a sort of expectation for what one may see.
Colors feel jagged and unrelated to one another, and the skyline can get lost to those who may be unfamiliar with it. The all-caps style of the text can feel a bit straining on the eyes.
Deeply historical town, with a large focus and concentration on its wooded areas. Everyone within the town knows of the paper factories located there, and there is a general outdoorsman style of living present.
Some slight scandals within the town in recent years and a rapidly growing community could lead many who view the logo to feel as though the town is as outdated as the logo appears to be.

How Might We?

“How might we create an effective mark with supplementing materials to create the sense of community that the town desires? How might we visually communicate integral parts of this community and area to help revitalize the image and tone of line within the town?”

Existing Logo

Process Overview

Objective and preliminary sketch work.
Primary logo and wordmark with color palette.
Slogans and logo patterning / exploration.
Primary typeface with some examples.

Final Logo & Variants

The final logo is simple, but helps to convey the outdoorsy feeling of the town. The font choice and color gives it an old school ‘camping’ feel, reminiscent of an old post-card. It evokes a feeling of “Wish you were here”, which plays along with the town’s motto. The tree is obvious, but aids in the woodsy feeling of the town, as well as the abundance of trees and the rich history of paper creation and paper factories that have been ever-present within it.