• Bang & Olufsen
• Bluewater
• ckIN2U
• De Beers
• Lenscrafters
• Pout

New client. New brief. To design a refreshed, glossy, 68 page, perfect bound magazine for Spring 2008.

It was a dream brief and the larger pagination enabled us to go back to basics and look at the project from a new and fresh perspective. Bluewater is our client, but they in turn have to try to satisfy 330 plus retailers, over 50 restaurants, cafes and bars and a leisure offering, all within the magazine.

We believed that by looking at the design in sections (incorporating the categories at Bluewater: fashion, beauty, travel, food, children, leisure and Bluewater as a destination) readers would be able to navigate their way through a stylish yet informative read, displacing their perceptions of the publication as primarily a fashion and beauty magalogue.

Each section opens on a spread to allow a beautifully visual page to sit with a feature. From a generic "soft sell" opening the design of the sections then flows into a "harder sell" on later pages – featuring products and services available at Bluewater.

Photographers and illustrations were commissioned with the brief that the visuals would be relevant, inspirational and could be seen in any of the best magazines on the newsstand today.

The marketing team at Bluewater views the magazine as instrumental in the 8% annual increase in spend.

• 79% of respondents said they had been inspired to visit Bluewater, make a purchase, or enter a competition after reading the magazine
• 85% wanted to receive the next issue
• 84% had passed on their copy to another adult
• 10,000 new people have been added to the database via competitions in the magazine (over 50% of total)
• Growth in market share can also be attributed to the magazine

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• • We worked on a front cover concept for Bluewater that would reflect the brand – a premium shopping and leisure destination. The client only gave us one guideline regarding the cover – the font to be used.
    
    We wanted the cover to become something that was instantly recognisable as The Bluewater Magazine and devised the concept of photographing a single B on every issue to achieve this objective. The B on the Spring 2008 issue was made up of roses and beauty products to fit in with the client’s seasonal marketing campaign based on rejuvenation. Further issues will again reflect Bluewater’s marketing strategies.
    
    The masthead became simply The Bluewater Magazine giving it confidence and courage without the need to come up with a name unrelated to Bluewater. The cover needs to entice and inspire readers to want to visit Bluewater over any other shopping centre or high street and although a model or product on the cover does convey shopping, does it say Bluewater?