Project
Role
Lead designer (brand)
Sector
Retail, lifestyle & property
Category
Brand identity
Emporium Melbourne
Emporium Melbourne is a major retail destination in the CBD, positioned at the intersection of fashion, culture, and city life. Following a period of declining engagement post-COVID, the project aimed to reposition the brand as more than a shopping centre – shifting it toward a culturally relevant destination embedded in Melbourne’s identity. The key challenges were to reposition the brand from retail-led to culture-led, reflect Melbourne’s diversity and include the “E” from the logo.
The House of Melbourne
The Approach
Research highlighted that Melbourne’s identity is not defined by place alone, but by the people who shape it – its communities, subcultures, and everyday participants. This informed the core platform: “The House of Melbourne” – it’s a stage for the city, rather than a voice over it. Instead of treating the “E” as a static logo element, it was redefined as an active compositional device that anchors communications, mirroring the building’s physical presence within the city. The broader identity system supports this framework through:
Bold typographic hierarchy to maintain clarity across varied content
High-contrast layouts that reflect the city’s energy and diversity
A flexible grid system that allows for variation without losing structure
High-impact, expressive photography capturing Melbourne’s diverse personalities
My Role
I led the end-to-end development of the identity system, defining the design direction, the role of the “E” device, and the photography art direction. I was also responsible for building the brand guidelines and toolkit to ensure consistent rollout across all applications.
Campaign video — A story of style, culture and community. Featuring Karinda Mutabazi (style), James Parr (community) and Briony Wright (culture).
Showing intertwined stories of three Melbourne born/based trailblazers through a series of high energy ‘day in the life’ films and accompanying library of effervescent photography. With no direct ties to specific brands, and using the image and voices of real, influential Melburnians rather than the supermodels they’ve used in the past, Emporium now have a genuine perspective that is beyond their own internal view.
Details
Project
Impact
Repositioned the brand from a retail destination to a culturally driven platform
Elevated the existing “E” into a flexible system device, improving recognisability and scalability
Increased consistency across touchpoints through a clear and adaptable design system
Strengthened alignment with Melbourne’s cultural identity, improving brand relevance
Studio
SomeOne Sydney
Creative Team
Creative Direction — Tom Dabner
Client Services — Rebecca Bosustow
Design — Michelle Jin (Brand lead), Julien Bertouille (Campaign lead), Tom Dabner, Krystle Chong
Copywriting — Tom Dabner
Research & Campaign Production — Crowd DNA