Olarro

A luxury safari lodge in Kenya that was struggling to attract visitors, Olarro (a Hermes Retreats destination) needed to change consumers’ outdated perceptions of safari holidays as the reserve of older visitors through a disruptive, modern rebrand.

This began with an Outhink session to work strategically through the brand development, from Olarro’s brand mission to its values, pillars, personality and tone of voice. Following this we took a trip to the resort where we were able to immerse ourselves in the culture and get a feel for the unique experience on offer. Embarking on a photography shoot and filming for a brand video, we captured the surrounding wildlife, luxurious touches and inspiring location for the rest of the world to see.

As a retreat in tune with its surroundings, our design was inspired by the culture, local people and tribes remixed in a modern, simplified way. We developed the look and feel with opulent and sophisticated patterns and colours used with natural, earthy textures for a result that’s both sympathetic to the environment yet refreshingly vibrant. Bringing this logo and brand to life, collateral was designed from the welcome itinerary all the way to the toiletries and decorative room keys. As the brand had no online platform, it was also crucial to bring it up to date and create a website from scratch with the new look and feel.

The rebrand blew the previous occupancy rates out of the water, going from just 28% to 95%. Within just a week of the website going live, Olarro received a significant increase in bookings to almost double the amount and their social following surged by 300%. The result put Olarro firmly on the map as the destination for luxury safari stays with a difference.