Paper with a smile: GF Smith reveals colourful new design

British paper manufacturer GF Smith turned to branding and communications agency Templo for its first rebrand in over a decade. Following an exploration of GF Smith’s people, culture, values and purpose, Templo created a bright and bold new brand identity that seeks to underline the company’s role in the modern creative landscape.

With over 135 years of heritage, Hull-based GF Smith felt it needed a rebrand that aligns with its plans for international growth and truly connects with its audience, the creative sector.

Ben Watkinson, global brand director at GF Smith, says, “We felt that our visual identity, though much loved inside and outside the company and right for GF Smith at the time, no longer reflected who we were as an organisation or as people, and that it was the right time to change, to create a new energy for the brand and, above all else, to look forward to the future.”

Noting the ‘gently radical’ spirit that courses through GF Smith, as demonstrated by its commitment to environmental and social causes, Templo aimed to encapsulate the brand within the idea ‘GF Smith. Feel good papers’.

Keen to depart from industry norms while still connecting with a global audience, the radical and dynamic GF Smith logo is omni-directional, with its wordmark depicting a smiling face.

GF Smith Homie, a personable and versatile sans-serif typeface, supports the revised logo, while its high-contrast colour palette was directly inspired by the company’s paper collection.

Templo’s co-founder and managing director, Anoushka Rodda, adds, “By strategically engaging and listening to both internal and external voices, we uncovered the core values of humanity, optimism, creativity and community that define the GF Smith brand, as well as the gently radical spirit that animates it. The result is a vibrant brand positioning and architecture, and a new visual identity rooted in these principles, which invite audiences to discover the warmth, character, and social conscience that has always been at the heart of GF Smith.”

GF Smith’s website was also redesigned with the help of technology partner Made by ON, which now aims to act as a captivating online experience where the boundaries of digital design have been pushed to the limit.