The challenge

Now sadly closed down, Cucumara was a cocktail bar hidden away in the heart of Nottingham city centre. As one of the cheapest bars in the city it was popular with students and Bohemian clientele.

The client wanted to retain the existing logo but redesign the brand and refurbish what was a tired, dated and gloomy interior. This had to be done in such a way as to maintain its appeal and unique place in the vast array of cocktail bars in the city.

The solution

To maintain a ‘grungy’, time-worn, earthy appeal, inspiration came from the hot colours and weathered appearance of South American streets with their colour washes and hand painted signs. Fruit colours helped to imply cocktails. In keeping with this inspiration, baskets were suggested as lampshades, wood and painted brickwork for the decor and colourful, mix-and-match Peruvian fabrics for the upholstery. These elements follow on with the menu and poster graphics where grungy letterforms and washed out backdrops reinforce the theme.