HOTEL GAHN is located in Khao Lak, a popular seaside destination in Thailand. The brand design aims to express throughout the hotel’s interior the owners’ intention to build this hotel as a family business and a homely place for intergenerational togetherness. The artfully crafted key visuals reference the Baba cultural roots of the hosts, as the hotel owner’s grandfather is from China and her grandmother is from Southern Thailand. The narratives about the lives of the first generation served as inspiration for the design elements, the experiences and the naming of the hotel.

Simplisis delivered a winning creative strategy for Hotel Gahn when it focused on the destination’s family-owned heritage and Chinese-Thai background. Using the story and heritage as inspiration for the creative strategy allowed Hotel Gahn to develop a completely unique and entirely ownable brand. The rich and textured visual experience is made even more meaningful by the story and positioning behind it. Judges thought this was executed to a high quality, resulting in a sophisticated, unified visual identity and brand experience. One said, “The strategy is very insightful and touchable. I love the idea of extending the brand from the owner’s family history. It’s elegant and very warm.”

Hotel Gahn and Simplisis’ strategy to bring the heritage of the hotel’s founder to life was one that paid off in spades. Simplisis created a brand world from the hotel’s owner’s family heritage from Thailand and China. Not only is the new visual identity seamlessly implemented across the hotel’s assets, it is unique, ownable and visually compelling. The result is a rich brand experience that is unified behind a focused strategic idea. “I loved this,” said one judge. “It’s a lovely and thoughtful creative execution.” Another said, “This is a terrific story and a great strategy; a lovely and thoughtful creative execution.”

Se La Va is a new island destination promoted by a sea excursion operator popular with Thai holidaymakers. The new brand logo is a successful fusion of Burmese and English characters in a handwritten style that adds a touch of simplicity. It conveys a feel of local folk tradition while reflecting the meaning of the name Se La Va, a combination of the Burmese word “selons” (sea gypsy) and the million-year-old black lava stone, the island’s landmark. This brand mark aims to emphasise the natural beauty of the island as well as respect for its indigenous culture.

To develop a brand for one of Love Andaman’s island destinations, Simplisis infused the place with multiple layers of meaning. Se La Va is derived from a combination of the word ‘selons’ in Burmese, meaning ‘sea gypsy,’ and of ‘lava’ for the the ancient black igneous rock that is the island’s hallmark. The name had to be approachable in Thai, Burmese and English and rendered typographically in multiple alphabets. Se La Va was a favourite of judges, who thought the naming strategy capitalised on strong storytelling to make an impact. “It seems like a simple idea,” said one, “but it is very well thought out.” Another praised the blend of local culture and accessibility in the naming strategy.

Sea voyaging for leisure is a competitive industry in Thailand. To differentiate its proprietary island, Love Andaman worked with Simplisis to develop ‘Se La Va.’ The distinctive name was combined with a southeast Asian-inspired typeface and captivating photography to deliver a rich and aspirational brand experience.

Maiton Island is a privately owned island in Phuket that needed to compete in a tough tourism landscape. It worked with Simplisis on a richly textured brand life with beautiful patterns and inspiration from the natural setting. Judges praised the integration of authentic and natural imagery into the visual identity.

Simplisis was tasked with retaining the identity and traditional Thai style of the Thavorn Beach Village Resort while, at the same time, continuing to communicate the value of traditional Thai arts to guests. Thus, the process of typography design needed to represent the value of the brand’s appearance. Simplisis characterised a handwritten Thai alphabet and blended it lightly with the English alphabet to evoke a sense of multiculturalism. The typography thus represents the Thai nature of the resort, while conveying its value to international visitors and clients. The new brand is one that will help inspire other Thai businesses to take pride in the country’s primitive art. “A good example of brand localisation via typography – it uplifts the image of the resort,” said one judge. “Clear understanding of the market, industry and challenges faced,” added another. “The outcome was a strong response to the strategy.”