Brand strategy development (with Salted Herring)

Way back in 2016 a bunch of craft-beer-loving mates decided to launch yet another craft beer brand into a crowded landscape. Our client and founder Bruce was an experienced beer brewer on a mission to make the best beer out there. While that has actually proved to be quite true, it wasn’t enough to build a story on. Our task was to develop a unique creative narrative, with an interesting name, identity and unique position in the market that would set them apart and help their incredible beer cut through. I quickly worked out they were all well travelled and well connected with other craft beer aficionados around the world. Their home territory was the hipster hood of Kingsland, Auckland. Their community was the world.

So they became Urbanaut. A ‘worldly beer from Kingsland Auckland’. Urbanauts worldwide share two loves - beautifully crafted beer, and exploring the great cities of the world where diverse urban cultural experiences grow their perspectives.

Fast forward 10 years and they are now one of the great, longstanding NZ craft beers, going stronger than ever. You can find them in supermarkets, bars and man caves all over the country. They have grown the brand themselves (largely on a shoestring) building on our founding strategy and ID with many creative and often quite fun, left-field iterations. They are continuously coming up with new brews, campaigns and creative stunts that celebrate the good times this beer brings. They also have an epic brewery experience (complete with full Burgernaut food offering) as home of the brand. Congrats to Urbanaut, so cool to see them flourishing during a super tough cost-of-living crisis in a sea of way too many tasty craft beers!

Urbanaut Craft Beer

Driving business forward