Launching a Team's Look
via tiffr.com
One of the first crucial decisions any startup has to make is creating a logo. This vital graphic design element is a big part of introducing a product to the public and setting a tone. It’s a huge part of successful marketing.
Especially so for sports franchises that need to establish a lasting bond with their fanbase. For expansion teams building from the ground up—before ever playing a game—it’s even more imperative.
This cultural dynamic is lovingly explored in the film Born Identities by Kathleen S. Jayme, which captures the creation of Canada’s first NBA teams, the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies. These teams just happen to have created their vibe before even hitting the court with their now-iconic logos.
Given the fact that hockey is basically Canada’s national religion, breaking into the sports market there required a rollout that could embrace both tradition and an evolving Canadian culture driven by immigration and youth culture.
Out west, the Vancouver Grizzlies were almost named the Mounties. But before that was official, the NBA’s first Creative Director Tom O’Grady suggested doing a name-the-team contest. Fans came up with Grizzlies—based no doubt in part on how vital British Columbia’s indigenous bears are to the area’s First Nations belief system and art. This created the opportunity to incorporate a symbol of strength as a core aspect of the new team’s brand, one that harkened to a motif common in the native art of the region (though not as directly as the nearby NFL’s Seattle Seahawks).
via nytimes.com
In Toronto, the name-the-team process tapped into the current commercial cultural moment, which at the time included the box office popularity of Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park. Although carnivorous dinosaurs aren’t native to Ontario, they sure were popular with kids. “T-Rex” got the fans’ vote, which got tweaked to “Raptors” by O’Grady. So was born a logo that launched a family-friendly brand that projected fierceness while also attracting kids, which seeded what would become an enduring fan base.
Today, NBA TOP Shot and Crypto Sports Collector are tapping into the power of graphic design, video imagery, newly-crafted cultural symbols, and sports memorabilia to offer NFTs that gain value moving forward. Like the NBA’s decision to create a creative director to oversee merchandise design and distribution in the 1990s, the league is again at the forefront of using innovative means to create images that become cultural touchstones.
Contact us so we can help you create iconic content.
“…these two iconic jerseys and logos that have stood the test of time and have actually gained popularity as time has gone on.”
- Kathleen S. Jayme, director of Born Identities.
