Treatwell Sans: A Brand Font Case Study

We recently discussed how we and the companies we work with can create custom brand fonts to be owned by the company whose brand it is – something they can feel comfortable investing in into the future to be uniquely theirs. A recent example is our project in collaboration with DesignStudio for Treatwell – resulting in the Treatwell Sans custom font family.

The Client

Treatwell is a popular – and growing – hair and beauty bookings service, built around the largest website of its kind in Europe and a successful app. Founded in 2008 and born out of London, Treatwell has worked hard to establish itself as more than just a bookings platform. It offers style tips and news, keeps an eye out for up-and-coming salons, and makes sure customers and managers connect in a wider community. This wider service offering needed a full brand refresh, contracted to DesignStudio.

Rebranding

DesignStudio worked with Treatwell to brainstorm a design language for the new brand, creating something unique that represents Treatwell’s services and values from the ground up. Clean lines and a warm welcoming aesthetic were key features throughout this process.

It was also important to them that Treatwell’s pioneering offering was presented in a unique manner without ever seeming unattainable; Treatwell makes style and beauty treatments more accessible, so it must always seem welcoming rather than exclusive.

Creating that welcoming, universal atmosphere whilst tying Treatwell’s promotional materials together was clearly a job for unique font selection to be present throughout. It was decided that this brand font should also be unique to Treatwell, helping to set them apart from the competition.

The Font

HypeForType and exclusive partner F37 who have regularly provided custom font solutions for clients, were approached early in the process. In consultation with DesignStudio, they identified F37 Ginger as the closest of their fonts to the look being sought. Its modernist, geometric clean lines match to the clean, welcoming aesthetic Treatwell require, and it’s close enough in style to other sans-serif fonts to feel accessible, not exclusive.

A brief document was created which picked out certain changes to be made to certain characters and both HypeForType and Face37 put their talents to work making those modifications.

Once these adjustments had been made to the total satisfaction of DesignStudio in thin, light, regular, bold, and italic styles, the companies new brand font was officialy named Treatwell Sans. The brand then received a custom type family that completely unique to them with full ownership rights.

Digital and print ready versions of the fonts were provided as part of the process, and the new custom type family ‘Treatwell’ sans subsequently came alive throughout the Treatwell Brand in various forms. The first of which was the in creating web-optimised @font-face software for the new online presence of Treatwell.

Following on from a successful online website launch, various press and marketing campaigns were launched with the Treatwell Sans brand font in place, transforming their business from a booking site to a platform of for true self-expression.

The custom font has since grown organically throughout the brand identifying itself as one of the key components to make up the core Corporate Identity of Treatwell’s visual presence.

In a busy marketplace, the need for brands to communicate in a unique visual manner is more important than ever. HypeForType offers a comprehensive custom font service that is unique to those needs. Your brands typographic choice isn’t just a “font” it’s an emotion, and a bespoke voice that creates a way for your customers to connect with your brand. Use the power of type and contact us today for all your custom type enquiries, in turn through typography we’ll find a way to make your brand even more engaging to your customers.