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MISSION
Heart. Mind. Gut.

Phillips Seafood

Where Tradition Meets Tomorrow

Maryland’s most iconic brands are badges of honor: National Bohemian, Old Bay, Legg Mason, Under Armour, Berger Cookies, and, among the most mouthwatering, Phillips Seafood. Tradition, family, and hometown pride define these unforgettable mainstays of life on the Chesapeake.

Beyond the Eastern Shore, Phillips Seafood is an industry leader in the global seafood market with their responsibly sourced crab meat and premium Maryland-style crab cakes. The only thing missing? Phillips needed a cohesive brand identity and an expanded web experience in order to better serve its direct-to-consumer audiences. Armed with our trusty crab mallets and genuine respect for the Phillips family legacy, we dug right in.

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Expertise

Brand Platform, Messaging, Content Strategy, Design, Advertising & Social Campaigns, User Experience & User Interface, Web Design, Development & Integration

Markets

Food & Beverage

Online HQ

PhillipsSeafood.com/

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I

Brand Refresh

Borrowing from the past. Creating a brand for the future.

The Phillips Seafood logo had equity, but the brand lacked the common voice and a solid identity system needed to unite its sub-brands and permeate future campaigns. We found a way to convey Phillips' rich history with modern energy, outfitting their communications with a cohesive voice and strong visual language.

Visual Language

Layout

Identity System

Style Guide

P.001 Brand Elements
P.002 Monogram
P.003 Heritage Badges
P.002 Monogram
P.003 Heritage Badge
P.005 Key Art Elements

Modern Meets Vintage

A brand that heralds it's history but is always looking forward to the next horizon.

P.004 Style Guide
P.005 Style Guides
P.004 Style Guide
P.005 Style Guide
II

Strategy & Architecture

The Phillips Seafood brand encompasses three divisions: Restaurants, Grocery, and Foodservice–each with their own goals and target audiences. We lead key stakeholders through a series of workshops to distill the common denominators between these divisions, highlighting core values and the high-level emotions that drive the Phillips work ethic. Together, we framed the Phillips Seafood branded house, unifying all three divisions with a solid brand platform and a manifesto worthy of approval from the family matriarch herself, Shirley Phillips. From there, we explored value propositions and positioning language unique to each division. Bringing everyone together in the same room to share memories and realize a shared purpose really does wonders for internal brand building. It reminds us of a crab feast, actually.

Brand Architecture

Copywriting

Brand Positioning

P.006 Brand Positioning
P.007 Brand Positionings
P.006 Brand Positioning
P.007 Brand Positioning
P.008 Mission Statement
“ ”

Keeping the voice of a Maryland institution as fresh as the meals they provide.

LEO  /  Brand Strategist, Seafood Aficionado

III

Identity System Update

After minimal modifications to the already iconic Phillips logo, we dove headfirst into fresh typography, salivating photography guidelines, and an expanded color palette based on the Chesapeake Bay environs. It's not every day you get to name a color "Old Bay." We brought everything together with contrasting graphic elements that strike a delicious balance between nostalgia and modern sophistication.

Print Collateral

Giveaways

Restaurant Branding

Packaging

Traditional Advertising

Social

P.009 Business Cards

Crabby Collateral

When in doubt, lead with a crab. Branded collateral features the famous Maryland Blue Crab, inducing appetites–and memories–everywhere.

P.011 Bottle Opener
P.012 Keychainss
P.011 Bottle Opener
P.012 Keychains

In-Restaurant Applications

Zeroing in on the restaurant brand division meant reimagining menus, table toppers, and carry-out packaging. We exercised the full range of the new Phillips color palette and introduced a classic and sophisticated monogram to the brand identity toolbox. In keeping with the welcoming, family-oriented Phillips persona, we used catchy headlines to spark Eastern Shore nostalgia and emotional connection.

100+

Years on the Water
P.013 Coasters
P.014 Takeout Containers
P.015 Takeout Bags
P.016 Silverware Wraps
P.014 Takeout Containers
P.015 Takeout Bags
P.016 Silverware Wraps

A Can't-Miss Menu

Featured Phillips favorites, sophisticated monogram, and a dockside vibe make this menu the print centerpiece of the new Phillips brand.

P.018 Place Setting Mockup
P.019 Table Tents
P.018 Place Setting Mockup
P.019 Table Tent

Advertising & Social: Grocery Division

With updated print advertising, we demonstrated how the new and improved Phillips brand could solve the communication needs of one of the company's three major verticals. The Phillips Seafood Grocery division needed to motivate shoppers to share the Chesapeake Dining experience with their families. With careful consideration given to the informational hierarchy, we let the copy do the work. Headlines, supported by delicious photography, helped shoppers imagine bringing their families together for a memorable Phillips Seafood experience.

P.020 Print and In-Store Advertising
P.021 Restaurant Signage
P.022 Outdoor Advertising
P.020 Print and In-Store Advertising
P.021 Restaurant Signage
P.022 Outdoor Advertising
IV

User Experience

The Phillips Seafood web challenge was clear: create a cohesive shopping experience between the Restaurants and Grocery division websites. To support the different goals of both divisions, we created two distinctly designed sites and united them with seamless user experience.

Strategy

Userflow

Sitemap

Wireframes

P.023 Sitemap Versions

Users First

Map out a user's journey through the site to assure concise direction and no dead ends which drive up bounce rates.

“ ”

Just like the blueprint of a house, wireframes establish content hierarchy, size relationships and base functionality for which the design is built upon.

STEVE  /  Maker of Wireframes, Eater of Seafood

P.025 Wireframes

Advertising & Social: Grocery Division

We took our time, mapping out user flow with logical paths and clear CTAs. We made it easy for users to make reservations, view menus, and get directions to the restaurant of their choice. If the anticipation of an upcoming reservation becomes too much to bear, they now have a clear path to search for local Phillips Seafood retailers, where crab meat, appetizers, and helpful recipes are waiting to be shared at home.

P.026 Mobile Homepage Comparison
P.027 Mobile Homepage Comparisons
P.026 Mobile Homepage Comparison
P.027 Mobile Homepage Comparison
P.028 Wireframe Layouts
IV

Design & Development

Expanded the updated brand into the interactive realm.

With wireframes and navigation worked out, connecting these sites visually was the fun part. As always, ADA compliance was a huge priority, and our updated Phillips brand identity was created with this in mind. It always feels great to round-out identity work with web design because we can go wild with graphic elements, typographic hierarchy, and tone, demonstrating the full potential of the brand. Our development team stepped in to connect all the dots and helped Phillips step up their online ordering process. With a custom front-end catalog and Shopify integration, the new restaurant site can overcome geography, connecting Maryland ex-pats and crab lovers nationwide with the premium Phillips food items they desire.

Custom Frontend

Wordpress

Online Store

Shopify Integration

WCAG 2.0 Compliance

P.029 Responsive Site Design
P.030 Restaurant Homepage
P.031 Retail Homepages
P.030 Restaurant Homepage
P.031 Retail Homepage
P.032 Mobile Friendly Shopping

From The Shore To Your Door

Shopify integration that allows users to have all their beach favorites delivered right to their home.

“ ”

Bringing the culinary traditions and welcoming hospitality of Maryland's Eastern Shore since 1956.

P.033 Responsive Layout
P.034 Location-Focused Navigations
P.033 Responsive Layout
P.034 Location-Focused Navigation
P.035 Tips & Tricks Page
P.036 Store Locator
P.037 Menu Detail Page
P.035 Tips & Tricks Page
P.036 Store Locator
P.037 Menu Detail Page

I smell fresh, hot, steamed Maryland Blue Crabs every time I look at the Phillips websites.

Frank

Account Strategist
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Louisville Slugger

Maryland Science Center