You may not think much about the storefronts you pass every day, but when you pass an Apple store, you know it. No matter its surroundings, the Apple store stands out as an icon—a hub of sleek sophistication that can make adjacent buildings and spaces look stale, outdated and out of touch.

How does Apple create this immersive buying experience?

Going Beyond the Façade

Many retail stores have branded their storefront, but that’s where the branding experience typically begins and ends. Aside from the name and showcasing merchandise which appeals to their core audience, the general branding level of the average mall clothing store is the same from one place to the next. With spaces like Apple, Tiffany’s, and Porsche, branding goes beyond the brand perception to also include the building and interior space as part of the complete brand experience. Retail outlets and strip malls generally don’t have this kind of brand flexibility, but stand-alone stores have far greater freedom and are granted more creativity.

Architecture as Part of the User Experience

When considering architectural branding, it’s no longer enough to consider the trimmings of the storefront, but the entire building and interior as a unified brand whole. Architects and designers need to consider how the space reflects the brand and influences the entire consumer experience. Going back to the Apple Store, every architectural detail, lighting source, material and finish within the space is designed to deliver “The Apple Experience.” Over time, this unique experience is what consumers expect—and why they return. Why is there always a line out-the-door when new Apple products are launched? It’s not only the cool, sleek product itself, but the experience of purchasing that product within the Apple-branded space. The architectural space is another critical facet of the complete brand experience.

The Brand Evolution and Keeping a Finger on the Pulse of Consumer Demand

It’s important to note brands evolve over time, and architectural aesthetics must keep up with the process. The combination of digital technology and the hybridization of spaces, combined with the building storefront, interior layout, brand colors, materials, and finishes create an entire impression and sets expectations in the user’s mind.

At the extreme end, brand architecture can even transform an entire city! The futuristic Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Spain has created an uptick in the local economy and coined the phrase “The Bilbao Effect” for the ripple effect the brand architecture has created city-wide.

You can expect wholistic branding to continue to evolve as brands become more distinct and integrate greater technology to craft a seamless user experience. Architectural branding is here to stay and will only grow as retailers and brand visionaries acknowledge its undeniable influence on their consumers.

Susannah is an accomplished integrated marketing executive with over 15 years experience developing, managing and implementing innovative, award-winning online and offline campaigns for Fortune 500 clients across a variety of industries.

For more information about DCS Design, contact Marcia Calhoun at 703.556.9275.

Keep up with all DCS Design projects in and around DC! You can also follow us on Instagram,  Twitter, Facebook, and Architizer to find out about new projects, current trends, and fresh design ideas.

Check out our design blog for more design trends and insights.
Take a look at current projects by DCS Design for more information and design inspiration.

The post How Architectural Branding is Changing the Retail Game appeared first on DCS Design.

Historically, branding and architecture have always been thought of as two separate disciplines. Architects and Designers would creatively design the buildings and interiors, while the branding wizards would independently work to devise a unique positioning framework, many times without even seeing what the design team was creating. At best, this approach created a lot of backtracking and adjustments once the two teams got their heads together … and at worst, it created a complete disconnect between brand creation and architectural design.

But in recent years, this rigid siloing of disciplines is becoming more and more convergent and is instead being thought of as a synchronized creative process—as it should be.

What Created the Convergence between Architecture and Branding?

The combination of architecture and branding has largely been spurred on by new advances in digital technology. The last decade has truly made it possible for architectural firms to create entirely new spaces that combine architecture, graphics, event production, and multimedia in a way that allows brands to deliver a truly seamless presentation that goes beyond a name on a placard.

How Have Users Received the Blending of Architecture and Branding?

These advances in technology have come at a cost—our attention. In an era where everything is on-demand and almost instantaneous, a first impression is now what carries the most weight and clout with users. Traditional advertising has essentially dried up, and brands, especially older brands, are keenly aware of the death sentence being labeled “old school” can bring. As a result, marketers have started looking for newer, more interactive opportunities to incentivize and profit from the user experience.

Fortunately, hybrid spaces that combine branded design and technology in fresh, new and innovative ways not only draw users in, but keep them engaged over a longer period of time, and ideally, keep enticing them back! One only need look at the birth of Apple stores and the long lines of people waiting for the next version of the iPhone to see how brand architecture has come alive and cemented Apple’s reputation as a sleek, sexy, powerhouse of innovation.

Designing Spaces that Create Experiences

It’s no longer enough to incorporate some signage or a few branding elements to a building front or interior entry space and call it a day. Today the best-branded spaces reflect the internal culture of a company, or for residential clients, it reflects the experience and exclusivity of living there. Modera Sedici, a reimagining of the historic Italian Embassy in downtown D.C., designed by DCS Design, capitalizes on this fusion of branding and architecture to create “The Renaissance of City Living” — blending Old World charm with modern living conveniences. The architectural design reflects the unique brand. The brand influences the architecture, thus creating a continuous cycle of user immersion.

Aston Martin, Porsche and Armani: Real Estate?

One normally doesn’t think of luxury car brands or clothing as having anything to do with real estate, but in Florida, major brands like Aston Martin, Porsche, and Armani are using brand architecture to transform ordinary residential spaces into luxurious living. As their name implies, real estate branded with these retailers’ style evokes a sense of sleekness, class, sophistication and undeniably good taste. When you can take a well-tailored piece of clothing or a stunning vehicle and carry that sentiment over into a living space, you’ve done something truly remarkable and long-lasting — and that’s precisely what today’s forward-thinking architects and designers are hoping to achieve.

Susannah is an accomplished integrated marketing executive with over 15 years experience developing, managing and implementing innovative, award-winning online and offline campaigns for Fortune 500 clients across a variety of industries.

For more information about DCS Design, contact Marcia Calhoun at 703.556.9275.

Keep up with all DCS Design projects in and around DC! You can also follow us on Instagram,  Twitter, Facebook, and Architizer to find out about new projects, current trends, and fresh design ideas.

Check out our design blog for more design trends and insights.
Take a look at current projects by DCS Design for more information and design inspiration.

The post The Ever-Increasing Role of Branding in Architectural Design appeared first on DCS Design.