In February 2008 I was brought in on an exciting project at Siegel+Gale. We were tasked to rebrand Dubai Events Holding, which is an emirate decreed company responsible for enhancing Dubai as an event destination.

 

Despite various organisational problems such as the horrendous traffic on Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai is a premium event destination. It offers world class entertainment and luxury shopping experiences for the moneyed. The new company was to arrange events to complement each other and orchestrate them holistically so that average stays moved from the one and two day mark to three, four or more.

 

We were very excited to present a concept led by the 'By Dubai' brandmark. It was designed as part of a whole brand identity system that lent itself to iconic celebratory symbols.

 

However, as is often the case with branding work in the Middle East, clients expect a logo parade and decide the fate of an identity based on the brandmark. And, as there is still a macho and patriarchal approach to business in the region our proposal was found to be too feminine.

 

Without access to other decision makers, we were not able to transfer our enthusiasm or present a stronger case for the new identity directly (as shown below). Another supplier was arranged to develop a symbol to accompany the new extremely institutional sounding company name of Dubai Event Management Corporation. The result is a brand identity which stands diametrically opposed to the flexible and inviting celebratory system we were expected to deliver.

DEH是一个在迪拜举办的以加强公司联系为目的酋长国会议。

尽管交通拥堵，由于拥有着世界级的娱乐场所和购物体验，迪拜仍然是一个最佳的举办地点。新形象代表一个庆祝的祝符号，“By Dubai”的字符被设计为整体品牌形象系统的一部分。

 

由于目前中东仍然有大男子主义和重男轻女的保守思想，这个设计在提案的过程中曾被质疑过于女性化。不过品牌形象的准确传达和灵活的标志系统最终得到了认可。