New Identity In Preparation For Nationwide Expansion
For 50 years, H&H Bagels has been recognized as the New York City standard for bagels. As the brand prepared for a nationwide expansion, they turned to creative studio High Tide for a new identity intended to invite everyone, everywhere in America to enjoy an authentic New York bagel. The program includes website, packaging, art direction, photography and messaging, as well as environmental designs like signage, menu boards, and other interior design elements. For the logo, High Tide embraced a new look and feel with clean custom lettering set against a reconsidered version of the original seal – more unique in shape but with a respectful nod to their old branding. The new logo (shown right) is flexible, able to work in a variety of orientations and configurations, pairing well with existing and future event or production partners.
Typefaces feature serif, sans serif and an elegant script, all working together to give the brand an accessible but premium feel across menu boards, graphics and the website. A mix of macro and artful food photography elevates the brand by spotlighting fresh ingredients.
Color is also playing an important role. For years, H&H Bagels had adopted a navy blue across all its designs. High Tide set out to infuse it with more vibrance, brightening it but also pairing it with brief moments of “surprise and delight” by using cobalt blue, avocado green, gold yellow, ketchup red and lox pink. “Through pressure testing and exploring a spectrum of blues, we knew how important it was to be used more intentionally. We also incorporated an off-white flour into the mix to bring depth but kept the navy dark enough to replace black for the sake of accessibility. By simply using the navy for text on the off-white background, it really opened up a whole new way to look at their brand colors and system – allowing the secondary colors to shine,” explains High Tide Founder and Creative Director Danny Miller.
“Wherever someone experiences H&H, the brand should stand out – welcoming others to feel the excitement of eating a classic NYC bagel,” says Miller. “We’re happy that our work is helping H&H maintain the essence of a mom-pop brand but with a modern, scalable twist.”
High Tide is no stranger to building NYC fast casual/dining brands having worked with, among others, Resy, Dig Inn, Sweet Chick and more.
