Pomelo refreshes branding as it 'transitions from brand to fashion platform'

Omnichannel fashion platform Pomelo has refreshed its logo, marking its transition from brand to fashion and lifestyle platform. Cathriona Nolan, AVP of creative operations and branding told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE that the team started on the rebranding by thinking about how it wanted to be portrayed as a platform. The previous Pomelo design system had been in place since 2015. "Since then, Pomelo has grown exponentially and we are well into our journey of transitioning from an eCommerce fashion brand to an Omnichannel fashion and lifestyle Platform," she said.

With the new logo. Pomelo signified its want in remaining modern and minimal, true to the original Pomelo design aesthetic. At the same time, it also wanted its branding to reflect its strong community focus. Hence, it moved from bold extended typefaces and all caps, to a rounder, softer capitalised approach, which feels more conversational and inclusive.

This is the case in both Pomelo's design and in its messaging. Nolan said it has introduced the Pomelo weave as a brand symbol,derived from the essence of Pomelo's existence - fashion - a needle and thread motion creating the "P" symbol, modernised to represent its fashion tech approach to everything it does.

Alongside the new logo was a redesigned app which offers improved brand and product discovery, and creates more visibility for the platform's more recent initiatives, including its in-app exclusive livestream feature. The new app also incorporates Pomelo's new branding elements including a refreshed logo.

The branding and app was fully designed and executed by Pomelo's in-house creative and technology teams. The logo was created by its in-house brand director and the app redesign was entirely conceived by a war room comprised of members of its in-house creative, product, engineering and UX/UI teams. As for the redesign of its stores which debuted in NEX in Singapore this month, it worked with European design agency Workshop, to elevate its in-store experience.

"We embarked on many months of benchmark, discussion and brainstorming before ever approaching the app design. The defining factors for us were to improve app usability for our users, ensure seamless brand and product discovery as we grow our assortment and brand offering, offer a feed that was easy to shop, navigate and discover both product and content and optimize for conversion," she explained. The biggest challenge, according to her, was probably in navigating brand discovery, since it was brand new to the Pomelo experience, moving from one brand to a multi brand platform.

Nolan added that it was a detailed process to align its app, website, 20 Pomelo stores, marketplaces, ad partners, social media and over 100 Pomelo partner locations. "Through detailed preparation and collaboration we were able to manage the switch over so that all existing stores and online channels were completed within seven days," she said.

When asked how its marketing will be done moving forward, Nolan said it will continue to focus on building awareness of Pomelo as a platform, as well as its in-house brand offering. The company currently has more than 100 brands on its platform in Thailand, including Vans, Converse, Aldo and Havaianas, and will be expanding its brand selection across other Southeast Asian countries in 2021. To spearhead this initiative, it named Alexandra Schonfrucht to the role of global head of third party brands to lead its growing third-party team. Prior to joining Pomelo, Schonfrucht was head of buying at JD Sports in the UK and previously led the buying department at Zalando in Germany.

Additionally, its #Pomelogirls community will continue to be a big driving force behind the brand's marketing. "For 2020 and beyond, our aim has been to showcase and feature the many faces of our incredible community of customers, staff, partners, fans and followers. We aim to establish ourselves as the number one fashion platform for women aged 18 to 40 throughout Southeast Asia, offering the widest choice, curated through best-in-class digital content, positioning Pomelo as the place to go for all of your fashion needs," Nolan added.

Separately, the brand expanded into Indonesia this month and will be launching in Malaysia during the first quarter of 2021. In September, it also rebranded its Pomelo Pick Up service to Tap Try Buy to reflect its objective of increasing online to offline adoption, as well as reflect growing consumer demand for the feature. The revamped Tap Try Buy branding is featured in its two most recent stores, The Mall Ngamwongwan and Terminal 21, and will be rolled out across new Pomelo stores going forward.

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