Putting the Grit in Grit Valley Climbing
A logo redesign project for Grit Valley Climbing – a full-service rock climbing gym in Bakersfield, California. The gym offers bouldering, auto-belay, free weights, cardio, yoga classes, HIIT training for climbers, community events, outdoor excursions, corporate team building events, and birthday parties. They also provide 24/7 access to its members.
What makes this gym special is that it’s the only full-service climbing gym located within a day’s drive to 5 national parks and dozens of more world-class climbing destinations. It is located in the heart of California’s Central Valley, with the gateway of the Kern River Valley right at its doorstep.
The Challenge
“We wanted the logo to encapsulate the GVC and had the designer create the G in such a way that if you were creative you could see a C and a V on it. But also, we live in a Valley where a beautiful river flows into and the V inside the G alludes to this V-shaped notch of the Kern River.
The word grit is really key for us. It stands for something we believe the community of Bakersfield should be proud to embody, as most people in California speak negatively about our town or have an outdated narrative. We want to give something for the locals to love and really celebrate.
The logo just isn’t embodying that GRIT to me. It’s a little too soft. It doesn’t really stand out. It doesn’t feel like something I can really be proud to wear on (a) shirt, have on a website or on the sides of a building
I like the clean lines (no mottled texture), and I do like the use of negative space for mountains. But it isn’t quite capturing it as I’ve let it stew for some time now.”
Our Solution
A logo redesign that embodies the look and feel of GRIT along with the values that the gym upholds. A business card and landing page were also designed and created to support the new logo design.
We started with a band discovery session before doing any designs to have a clear idea on how we are going to approach this. These are the keywords that came up that best represents the brand.
HARDWORK
BOLD
ADVENTURE
EXCITING
COMMUNITY
HEALTH
Initial Logo Redesign Proposals
Design Proposal 1
The word GRIT rising above the valley to show how you can succeed with grit and determination. I used a bold clean font to give it a sense of pride, with a rounded edge to make it look. The letters are close together to reflect the kind of community and hospitality the gym has. Works well as a stand-alone icon and in dark backgrounds.
Design Proposal 2
A stamp-like logo to represent how the culture and values of the gym stick to you, and how you would be proud to show it and be a part of it. The elements of the design reflect the feeling of adventure and excitement.
Design Proposal 3
A bold font to show pride but in small caps, so it would not be too loud which might alienate the younger and older audience. We’ve kept it clean so it would not intimidate those with no experience in outdoor activities. The valley is subtly placed in the negative space below the word grit with a blue line underneath it to represent the Kern River. The modern design for this would surely make you stand out from other gyms in your area.
The Result
The valley
Bold clean font to give it a sense of pride, with a rounded edge to make it look friendly
Logo Usage
Primary Vertical Logo
Primary Horizontal Logo
Use only when:
Using logos on footers, headers, or when scaled to a size smaller than 1 inch. Using logos on print items that require a small logo.
Use only when:
Using logos on print or web items that require a small logo. Using logo on website favicon.
Inverted logo on primary and secondary brand colors
Brand Typeface
Brand Color Palette
Accurate reproduction of the brand color scheme is essential in communicating a clear and consistent message about the company image.
The pantone colors should be used wherever possible, with CMYK / RGB being matched as closely as possible depending on the materials and print process.
PRIMARY COLORS
• Logo / Header & Body Text / Flat Background
• Must predominate all executions
• Must appear in all executions in some form
Chartreuse
cmyk: 16, 0, 100, 0 rbg: 230, 255, 4 hex: E6FF04
Rich Black
cmyk: 75, 68, 67, 88 rbg: 4, 4, 4 hex: 040404
SECONDARY COLORS
the secondary colors are to break the monotony
and create a sub-hierchy from the proamry colors
Chinese Silver
cmyk: 19, 15, 16, 0 rbg: 204, 204, 204 hex: cccccc
Persimmon
cmyk: 2, 83, 100, 0 rbg: 236, 80, 4 hex: ec5004
Brand Icons
This icon style can be used on materials to explain the information better with graphics. This will help the reader understand the message better. The icons will vary depending on the content of the material.
Image Treatments
image treatments
Black and white or colored images overlayed with blocks
rounded edge, angled color blocks
Colored blocks as background or accent in a layout.
Backgrounds and Patterns
Geometric angled patterns on background
Design Elements Application
Merch and clothing
Branded merchandise are a great way to increase your brand awareness. The more people wear it, the more chance a lot more will get to know and be interested with your brand. We’ve kept the designs bold and simple to be inline with the rest of the brand visuals.
The Business Card Design
Landing Page Design and Development
