4 Legged Friends Branding + character design

Four Legged Friends is a community project designed to improve the well-being of children. Animals are scientifically proven to help lower stress levels and promote positive mental health. Working with an alternative provision school their animals help young people who might be struggling in life due to emotional and social needs. They have also teamed up with care homes.

They were looking for local creative studios, so contacted Manchester design agency Superfried to develop a versatile brand identity to adapt as their project grows. The client initially suggested a paw print as a strong, clear symbol that would connect with their name. Although apt, this approach is heavily used, so to create distinction, the proposed starting point was developed further to simultaneously represent the face of a dog – their main therapy pet. This illustration style led to a far stronger and more effective creative solution.

With an eclectic range of animals including – cats, dogs, guinea pigs, and rabbits – using the new design process additional animal characters could be easily designed and illustrated. For each new species logo design an additional colour was selected for the brand palette. This creative strategy would enable opportunities for potential merchandise to raise money for the project, such as name tags, leads, clothing for pets, and stickers for the children. In the future, as new animals are introduced, tailored logo designs can be developed as required using the paw template designs.

4 Legged Friends website