&Barr Brand Guide
Every great creative has gotten that one assignment that left you thinking: “But we could do this…We could just go for it, and ask for forgiveness later.” For us, that was this. In all honesty, the assignment was simple: update our brand guide. But that was enough to send a team of creatives down a rabbit hole that rumor says they haven’t made it out of. “Update” became “start from scratch”, “scratch” being the year 1957, our founding year. We worked tirelessly to capture 65 years in the ad business, hundreds of team members’ contributions, and countless lives changed.
The assignment then became: find out who we really are, then make something out of it that no one will ever forget.
THE EOLA: A NIGHT IN 1957
THE EOLA: A NIGHT IN 1957
For many, turning 65 means winding down after a lifetime of work. But us, we’ve only just started jamming. So, on Friday, November 4th, 2023, we combined our third annual client Open House with our 65th-anniversary celebration and took it back to where it all began: the year 1957.
And to celebrate the era we opened our doors and welcomed guests into The Eola, a swinging jazz club, where we rolled out the red carpet and brought in the heavy brass… a live band, that is!
The creative team went nuts on this project. And it shows.
If it wasn’t designed by hand, it was made by hand.
One thing to know about me: most of the time, I’m anything but just a copywriter. Art department, wardrobe, flower planter, woodworking, floor cleaner, you get the idea. This project was a great example of that. Actually, anything on this website is a great example of that.
The Barrchive
Meet the Barrchive. It’s an homage to the beloved industry publication, Lürzer’s Archive, which features some of the world’s best campaigns.
With that as our inspiration, the Barrchive came to life — a tongue-in-cheek take on what our clients’ ads might have looked like back in 1957 when then Fry | Hammond | Barr first opened its doors. The result is a bound collection of vintage ads that celebrate both &Barr’s 65-year history and the clients we partner with today including AAA, Badcock Home Furniture &more, Florida’s Space Coast Office of Tourism, Habitat for Humanity. Rosen Hotels & Resorts, Sonny’s BBQ, Space Coast Credit Union, and many, many others.
Revealed and gifted at &Barr’s 65th anniversary event, our clients were thrilled with their “classic” ads and the self-promotion piece itself. Apparently, so were the ADDY judges, where we took home some nice hardware. Best of Show, baby.
