Ten With Ken (audio)

In this episode of Ten with Ken, host Ken Steele sits down with Dorita Pentesco, Director of Marketing & Recruitment at Niagara College, and Carmen Serravalle, Vice-President Creative at STC Storytellers, to discuss the “refresh” launched this month of the 15-year-old Niagara College brand. NC’s circular “blue button” logo was originally introduced in 2009, and was immediately embraced by staff and students – who suddenly started buying and wearing branded clothing. The unique shape lent itself to external signage, buttons, and even application to the butt end of beer kegs at the campus brewery. People on campus have a powerful affinity for the NC button, proudly embracing the “I am nc” slogan. Many on campus “bleed blue” – so any changes to the existing brand identity needed to be carefully considered. There were, however, technical considerations like legibility at small sizes and by screen-reading software, and a desire to simplify the wordmark and render it in a more friendly, less corporate way. So S