Once a quiet and provincial seaside town, Mandurah in Western Australia was at risk of being perceived as a low-socio economic outer suburb of the ever-expanding Perth from a tourism perspective. Their Local Government Area’s city brand and communication systems were designed pre-digital communications and without consideration of modern-day brand architecture – resulting a myriad of unrelated sub-brands.

The re-brand needed to provide a practical system for communication and be able to pivot from pride to practical as needed. A community engagement initiative collected insights from over 2000 citizens to create a narrative vision – this was then distilled into a vision statement that would form the heart of the new brand identity: Woven by Waterways, a City with a Village Heart.

The design vision was underpinned by four key pillars as determined by the community: the utmost importance of the environment; the need for continued considered economic growth – including tourism; a tightening of the social fabric and fostering a caring community spirit; and supporting the health and wellbeing of the entire community with accessible services.