Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year undergoes identity refresh via Special Design

In the lead up to Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year – which saw Professor Rangi Matamua (Tūhoe) win for their contribution to the celebration of the Māori New Year, Matariki – Brown Bread tasked Special Design to refresh the award’s brand identity to better represent a modern and progressive Aotearoa.

Special Design approached this challenge as an opportunity to celebrate the success of Kiwibank’s efforts to honour deserving Kiwi and to create a platform that engages Aotearoa with the stories of our nation’s most inspiring changemakers.

To champion this mission, Special used an editorial-driven approach to delve into the world of the people, the winners and what makes them special by creating an intimate, honest, and authentic look into what makes them tick and how they got to where they are today.

Says Heath Lowe, executive design director, Special: “Our goal was to more deeply reflect the people behind the New Zealander of the Year ceremony. Kiwibanks tohu has been at the core of the identity for many years and was inspired by the weave of their kakahu, Pouhine, which is presented to the Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year annually. We’ve brought the tohu to life as the underlying structure and connecting thread to bring our people, their stories and communities into sharper focus.

“Our approach to photographing our heroes is an observant and genuine portraiture style, capturing each individual’s unique personality within their own environment and community, while a more diverse and celebratory colour system reflects a vibrant and ever-changing Aotearoa.”

Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year Awards programme is Kiwibank’s longest standing and most recognised partnership. The brand promise is to enable Kiwi to thrive; this sentiment is reflected in the awards, which celebrate people who use their passion for New Zealand to make our country a better place. Both are united in their purpose to make Aotearoa better off.

Says Carlo Gomez, campaign and engagement manager for Brown Bread: “We are thrilled to have worked with Special on this highly anticipated brand refresh. The team understood what we were trying to champion and worked tirelessly to convey our messaging in a bold and endearing way, it was humbling to see the new brand identity on display in market and on the night at this year’s Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year Awards.

“We wanted to channel and represent the people of Aotearoa, which was executed by the team at Special Design, alongside our other talented partners McCarthy Design and Augusto.”

Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year took place on Thursday 30 March – results can be viewed here.

Brown Bread:
Jo Blair – Founder and Director
Carlo Gomez – Campaign and Engagement Manager & Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year Awards Director

Kiwibank:
Erica Beagley – Head of Brand
Kim Waghorn – Senior Brand Manager

Special Design:
Heath Lowe – Co-founder, Executive Design Director
Ethan Lowe – Senior Designer
Madeline Lissington –Iintermediate Designer
Jolene D’Souza – Strategy Director
Katie Hamilton – Design Group Business Director
Priyanka Patel – Group Business Director