A New Era
Michael Hill Jeweller creates contemporary jewellery to mark life’s most meaningful moments. But after decades of discounting, the brand had lost its prestige. The brand was fatigued. Customers thought it was downmarket, outdated, and masculine. We were tasked to bring the sparkle back to this iconic brand.
A brand that needed to look to its future by uncovering its past. Michael and Christine Hill were originally independent fine jewellers hailing from New Zealand. But after decades of discounting, their story had been lost. To create a new brand strategy and identity, we drew on their past to inspire the future.
(Just a note: I only worked on the brand strategy and tone of voice. I wish I were as good at design as the brilliant brains behind this.)
Michael Hill needed an identity that elevated the brand and its positioning. We delved into the brand and what made it tick, creating a robust strategy to build the brand’s identity and tone of voice. Visually, we embraced the hallmarks and aesthetics of luxe branding to elevate the brand and attract a whole new customer base.
The new brandmark is deeply grounded in their origin story. A ‘M’ and ‘H’ combined create a window form, paying homage to the iconic window displays that Christine designed in the brand’s formative years. It elegantly reflects their heritage and passion for craft and creativity. The new colour palette references the lush green landscapes of their birthplace, Whangārei, New Zealand.
The new typographic palette reflects the craft and precision of jewellery making, creating a sense of contemporary elegance. (You can also see some of my writing, exciting.)
Our design work was intentionally reductive, creating a more refined, elegant and feminine identity that spanned all touchpoints and channels – from the smallest button on a digital banner to the biggest billboards in the country.
Tonally, we leaned into the elegance and femininity of Michael Hill’s products, without losing sight of their humble, Kiwi voice.
