Legendary US guitar brand Martin – the acoustic of choice for the likes of Elvis Presley, Kurt Cobain, John Mayer, David Cosby, Joan Baez and Ed Sheeran – has undergone a major brand refresh designed to build on its heritage and help propel it towards its 200th anniversary.
CF Martin & Co, which was founded in 1833, makes guitars for both professionals and amateurs; although even its “value” model, the Martin D-X2E, retails at £695 and the D-200 Deluxe comes in at £133,600.
The company can also boast the most expensive guitar in the world. Kurt Cobain’s 1959 Martin D-18E acoustic guitar, which he played at Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged in New York concert, has sold for over $6m at auction in 2020.
The brand refresh has been handed to Coley Porter Bell, part of Ogilvy, and is aimed at creating more of an emotional connection with established and future players; resulting in a new purpose “to unleash the artist within”.
The strategy is brought to life through a “verbal identity and refreshed visual system that comes alive like a musical composition, feeling both improvisational and rhythmically disciplined”.
The branding includes an optimised logo, expressive typography, a refreshed imagery style that puts the artist at the forefront, an expanded colour palette and a new design system, with animated textures and motifs – inspired by the frets and strings – designed to represent the expressions of the artist and the different emotions that music creates.
The new colour palette reinforces the use of Martin Guitar’s green as its core brand colour – a shade that has donned its guitar cases since the company was founded – and also enlists fresher, more vibrant colours to amplify palette.
The new look extends across all customer touchpoints, from social media and its own website to new advertising and trade show experiences, and is aimed at offering a unified look that engages established Martin Guitar enthusiasts, as well as the next generation of artists.
In addition to the core refresh, Coley Porter Bell has overhauled the brand’s retail base to communicate the bespoke and personalised experiences on offer.
CF Martin & Co vice-president of marketing Mike Nelson said: “We are excited to unveil our new visual identity and new brand strategy. The results exceeded our expectations and Coley Porter Bell has been an amazing partner on every step of the journey.”
Coley Porter Bell president Jenn Szekely added: “We were entrusted by the Martin family and company to help this iconic American brand tell its story to its current and next generation of artists. This opportunity to reposition a brand so rich in legacy and artistry was an honour and not taken lightly.
“The new branding has the artists at its heart. From the dedicated loyalists who bond over Martin all around the world to the new and emerging players discovering the Martin tone and experience for the first time.”
And, in a glowing endorsement, David Crosby said: “Martin is a company America should be really proud of because they’ve never compromised, they’ve never done less than their best, they continually make the best instruments in the world.”
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