Logo design in the active space can be sticky, as people tend to go overly-literal more often than other industries. An icon of a runner or cyclist does not a good logo make – especially when it’s been exhausted over spans of teams, coaches, retail stores, and gear.
Kim Kelley announced she was starting her own business, Kelley Kinetics, to offer a range of coaching and athletic training expertise to Milwaukee’s active community. I immediately knew that her standout personality and strong energy deserved a visual identity that really stood for who she was, and reflected just what she could bring to her clients.
When Kim starts to talk about her area of expertise, you immediately gather two things: 1. she’s incredibly knowledgeable, and 2. she’s incredibly genuine. Kim has a natural inclination to understand the human body, how important foundations are for injury prevention and training progress, and she’s got multiple degrees and certifications to back it up. She also wants her athletes to succeed. She’s really, really invested in their success, and when someone believes in you that much, you can’t help but believe in yourself.
After talking with Kim about her goals, values, and process, her brand mission was specific and clear: Forward progress is built on a strong foundation.
In going to the drawing board for logo design, we needed to express both of these things – strength and dynamics. We already knew we were going to avoid literal human icons. (Please. Stop using these.) The first round of concepts were too soft or too hard – the dynamic movement designs spoke more to something like a yoga practice, while the solid block concepts were too heavy, too immovable.
After a few rounds of development we landed on a double ‘K’ motif, with a reversed angle arrow pointing forward. Integrating subtle alliteration with strong visual letter forms, with a forward arrow bring her whole message together in one concise mark. The arrow has been placed throughout other collateral, to maintain a consistent design element and remind her community that there is always forward progress within their reach.
Role: Brand development and graphic design
Client: Kelley Kinetics
Impact: Owner and Coach Kim Kelley regularly reports positive feedback from her clients and teams on the logo.
“Megan was an expert at sorting through my unorganized thoughts, and turning them into an art piece. My logo really describes who I am as a person, and as the direction I want my company to go. I’m still in awe that she could take all my words and put them into a simple visual design that fully expresses my brand identity and what I have to offer clients. My brand really stands out because it doesn’t look like what everyone else does, but it still gives an instant and strong impression of Kelley Kinetics!”
Owner and Coach, Kelley Kinetics