Bahrain Harbour

Below: Before and After Images in Slide Show, Video,  Summary, Credits

Real estate is one of Bahrain’s largest business sectors with many large-scale projects transforming key areas of the island. Bahrain Financial Harbour was due to be part of a multi-harbour mega project only to be hit by financial issues resulting in only the financial component being delivered.

Bahrain Financial Harbour suffered perception challenges from day 1. Despite being prime waterfront real estate in the heart of the capital, consumers believed it was for the financial industry and felt no connection. The result was a location dead after office hours including the weekend. This was not supportive of the nation’s urban strategy.

Changing the name was key. The ‘Financial’ component suffocated its potential as a destination, limiting appeal. What was required was an open and welcoming name that spoke to its unique location and proposition. The simple & relevant solution proposed was Bahrain Harbour.

Key to the brand strategy was the new ‘Energising Urban Waterfront’ positioning supported by values of ‘Dynamic’ and ‘Inspiring’. By framing the location around the notion of ‘energy’ we could literally breathe life into a previously boring and dead space. The new ‘harbour time’ brand-phrase and messaging platform gave voice to this new energy, allowing the ‘promise of the harbour’- from business to leisure, to be framed as an aspect of ‘harbour time’.

We created a new dynamic brand mark and graphic language based on the notion of sails. The iconic form drew on references from Sumerian type forms and Arabic Dhow sails to create a unique B mark that could be rendered in any number of ways.

The brand now serves as a platform for new products such as Harbour Heights, Harbour Row and Harbour North, while stimulating demand from B2B & B2C tenants with its new dynamic urban center appeal. The response has been overwhelmingly positive on all levels.