Destination Brand Identity for Carhué: a small city in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.
About Carhué:
Carhué is a small city in Argentina, and it is a truly unique place to visit. The ruins of Villa Epecuén, a former touristic town on the shores of Lago Epecuén that was wildly popular in the 70s and was completely flooded in 1985, are Carhué's main attraction. Walking around this devastated town is shocking and moving, but there are many other reasons why Carhué is so different from any other place.
Carhué has the largest number of migratory shorebirds in South America. Many of the most relevant buildings designed by architect Francisco Salamone, which combine art decó, Italian futurism, and functionalism, are found in the city. Lago Epecuén has a salt concentration in its waters between 180 and 200 grams per liter, more than four times the concentration found in the sea, and you can float in it! Carhué's mud has certified healing properties and their hot springs are very popular, making it a great place for wellbeing travel. In Carhué everything you see is special.
About this project:
The main aim was to build a brand that represented Carhué's spirit and grew awareness and interest among potential visitors.
We surveyed 84 locals and 300 tourists, had in-depth interviews with 25 local operators, developed 5 workshops, and consulted over 50 market research studies.
To highlight the most popular concepts mentioned in the surveys (interesting, magical, different, surreal, unique), Carhué's identity focuses on the uniqueness of the city. We came up with "La belleza de lo distinto" ("The beauty of what's different") as a slogan that sums up the city's personality, designed Carhué's logo creating a font specifically for the city, and designed graphic elements and patterns that represent the city's most iconic attractions originally.
Project team:
Andrés Ziperovich (coordination)
Verónica Lampón, Gonzalo Quintana & Valentina Tobías Córdova (brand strategy)
Valentina Tobías Córdova (visual identity designer)
In collaboration with local government.
