Lawyer Times has been a chess master for over 20 years. When an opportunity arose for him to teach children chess at an after school program, Lawyer saw it as an opportunity to expand his vision to help children apply chess skills to life decisions. Being a start-up he ran into the typical issue, not having the identity and collateral needed to grow his business.
After extensive research of the industry and competitors we noticed several trends: competitors’ brand logos were solely chess pieces, primarily utilized blue and none focused on the practical benefits chess skills have on kids. Additionally, FMCA’s children range from 5–17 years therefore needing a logo that was neither too childish nor too mature. It had to be one that kids would want to wear.
We created a slogan to capture the vision and purpose of the academy, “Mastering Chess and Life”. To provide differentiation the logo utilized orange instead of blue since the color stimulates brain function and thinking ability, critical skills needed in chess game play. Additionally, orange is a color long used in collateral design targeted to youths. The logo has an ivy league, elitist feel underscored by the bust-style silhouettes of the boy and girl. Chess pieces are atypical, often associated with Chess Masters who bring their own high-end game pieces to tournament play. Collateral design focused on utilizing children enrolled in his programs keeping stock images to a minimal. We also added other branding elements like game boards to help create the chess school association. Lastly, we provided copy writing services that highlighted how children can apply chess skills to life decisions ultimately making them masters of both chess and life.
The academy has propelled beyond projections with interest from over 50 centers. children are now enrolled in chess programs in the Greater Boston area.