Traditionally made,
made local

With two primary audiences, the ‘shefs’ and the patrons, the focus was a brand which could expand on different cultures and cuisines, while creating belonging and trust.

Creating connections

The result is a colourful, welcoming and flexible brand identity. The Shef ‘shared bowl’ is inspired by the sharing of food and diacritical marks found in languages outside English. It accents the logo, which is simple but replicable — a nod to the ease of using the platform and a meal cooked and shared many times over. Graphics are minimal, allowing photography and typography to centre the food and people. Paired with this is a natural and hospitable voice, catering to all communities.

Going digital

The initial brief requested only the Shef rebrand, supported by extensive brand guidelines, print and digital collateral. With the success of the brand launch, we overhauled Shef’s website. Micro-animations, new product user flows and the Shef portal was also completed, with real-time data tracking for shefs to view and manage their performance.

Growth and results

More product features, design elements and concepts have been created as Shef has grown, expanding their San Francisco HQ, attracting $28.8M in seed funding and expanding their markets.

In 2021, this rebrand was shortlisted for the Indigo Design Awards Branding Design of the Year 2021, and won gold in both Logos for Social Change and Best Branding — Food.

Read about the Indigo Design awards in our blog post.