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Her mission was to create a home fragrance and home décor that embodied ethical and sustainable practices. Marina Cighir had a product in the early stages of its journey. Her mission was to create a home fragrance and home décor that embodied ethical and sustainable practices and always delivered uncompromised design.
How We Turned An Ambition Into A Globally Recognised Brand
Originating from Venice, the brand is inherently Italian. The task was to keep the Venetian and Italian themes constant as well as appeal to a wider, international demographic. Marina had assembled a global team and we wanted to recognise this through the brand.
The brand needed to feel like home. Yet international at the same time.
Marina also made clear that since the inception of the project, she had only implemented ethical and sustainable practices - a long-term goal of hers was to gain the established Butterfly Mark Certification for Positive Luxury.
Aina Kari’s visual identity and brand language needed to showcase the combination of classic Italian design with international artisans; two factors that define the brand.
We established core pillars to anchor the voice and messaging to. We then built out keywords and phrases that are steeped in emotion, to play on the romanticism of the Italian language and the whimsical design of the Venetian Murano glass. This messaging and undertone flows through the brand cycle and portrays Aina Kari’s core ethos of inclusion, alluring design and fair practice.
HYD Studio incorporated hints of Venetian red juxtaposed with the soft cream and warmth of deep green throughout Aina Kari’s visual branding. A tailored colour palette highlighting Marina’s heritage subtly reaches customers at each touchpoint and creates a visual identity synonymous with the brand.
The website needed to promote online sales, nurture Aina Kari’s audience and have the voice and brand run effortlessly throughout. The website was developed through Shopify to prioritise the use of back-end benefits for cataloguing products.
We integrated third-party apps to include a translator to make the website accessible to a global audience and customised the product page where sections were coded in to showcase the brand’s story and sustainable practices.
ACTIONS
THE BRAND & DIGITAL PLATFORM
EXPANSION
By staying true to the brand strategy, anchoring Aina Kari’s messaging around its Italian roots and keeping all of the manufacturing in Italy - from glass and marble vases to bold illustrated packaging - the brand has gained traction with a wider, international demographic. In 2022 alone, the brand has made huge strides and is now stocked globally; ranging from New York, Verbier, Hong Kong, Monaco, Berlin, Kuwait and Beverly Hills to touch on but a few.
Securing these specific locations, further highlights how Aina Kari has homed in on her target market. By identifying a key demographic early on in her brand strategy, Aina Kari has prioritised this market in her growth stages and has strategically grown in line with this. An incredible feat for a brand only at the beginning of their story.
The name needed to unfold the story behind the brand. Aina Kari is a Persian mode of architectural decoration; the practice of covering surfaces with mosaics of mirror glass.
Dating back to the C15th, Venetian glassmakers produced small mirrors by cutting open blown glass cylinders. These fragile decorations were then purchased by Armenian silk traders passing through the area. On their return caravan transit to Persia, the glass broke. But even in their broken state, the light-refracting and vision-diffusing qualities of the glass produced a beauty so mesmerising the Persians reused the glass as interior art decoration.
Aina Kari gives homage to the beauty of the Murano glass, keeps true to Marina’s Italian heritage and introduces a global reference.
Growing from a product into a globally recognised brand, Aina Kari is now listed on the luxury online retailer, Moda Operandi, as well as being stocked in Bergdorf Goodman on Manhattan’s prestigious Fifth Avenue.
PRESS
On top of securing partnerships with international stores, Aina Kari has enjoyed regular exposure in the press and has been seen in Elle Decor, House & Garden, The Financial Times and Decohome, amongst others. These publications are the names brands work tirelessly to appear in; they set apart the successful and sought-after brands, creating trends.
The brand Aina Kari has secured a huge level of recognition. But most importantly to Marina, she received the highly coveted Positive Luxury Butterfly Mark in recognition of excellence in efficient packaging design, circular economy, sustainable suppliers and community involvement.
Marina’s experience working at global brands in Italy and abroad, as well as Newell Home Fragrance in Italy, led her to combine her two passions; home fragrance and high-end design.
Marina had sourced award-winning designers and French “ noses” to create individual scents which she then placed into Venetian, glass-blown holders. For the first collection, “Commedia Dell’Arte “ The Italian-crafted Murano glass was designed to be repurposed once the candle had finished, but to always draw the customer back to the original scent of the candle. Two other outstanding collections were launched afterwards: The Original Pallissandro Marble and Haute-de Décor.
However, the brand and visual identity had yet to take any true form.
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