Infiniti
Environment
Process
Identity
Launch
Identity Elements
Delivering a modern luxury experience at every customer touch point
When Nissan decided to enter the American luxury automobile market in the late 1980s, it needed a unique presence to stand out among competitors and distinguish itself from the rest of the Nissan line. The company asked Lippincott to create the channel, name and visual identity for the new luxury line. We called it Infiniti.
After 16 illustrious years as one of America’s most esteemed luxury automotive brands, Infiniti decided to expand the brand globally.
Challenges
To clearly communicate the brand’s distinctive essence
To align the visual identity with the vehicle’s design language
Design a dealership prototype to deliver a customer-oriented experience of modern luxury, the essence of the Infiniti brand
Create a flexible and adaptable design program for implementation at dealerships globally
Actions
Refreshed the logo, altering the brand symbol to make it more fluid with a finely crafted quality, and refined the word mark to make it more balanced
Developed new primary brand colors, silver black and white, and a new accent, violet, to be used with a support palette of warm neutral tones
Applied all elements of the new visual system across a wide array of media applications
Developed guidelines to ensure its effective application
Developed the first Infiniti dealership prototype in Gangnam, Seoul, Korea
Selected site layouts, building architecture, interior designs, signs, fixtures and furniture to facilitate a customer-centric journey, express the Infiniti brand consistently and provide flexibility for local adaptation
Designed a generous, dignified reception lobby more akin to that of a boutique hotel than a car dealership
Integrated a lounge on the mezzanine level to offer an intimate setting for consulting and hospitality
Created the two-story gallery showroom on the fifth and sixth floors to dramatically display new Infiniti vehicles against the backdrop of Seoul’s fast-growing skyline
Combined natural material finishes, distinctive furniture and custom fixtures to infuse the gallery with a modern but comfortable expression of the brand and to deliver a memorable dealership experience
Selected a distinctively curved glass storefront for the multi-story exterior to prominently display the new the Infiniti logo and dealer name
Results
Lippincott’s dealership design for Infiniti has won awards from ISP/VM+SD and Chain Store Age.