CASSETTE
Brand Strategy | Visual Identity | Sensory Branding |
Content & Art Direction
Cassette is a slow-living sound lounge and nostalgic
cocktail bar in Toronto, rooted in analog sound,
vintage interiors, and warm conversation. Inspired
by 60s–80s listening culture, it offers a
sensory escape where time slows, music crackles,
and memories resurface.
Project Goal
To create a cohesive brand world that feels cinematic,
nostalgic, and deeply sensory — across both print and
digital touchpoints. The brand needed to evoke analog
warmth in a modern landscape while remaining
elegant, emotional, and curated.
Logo Design
Menu Design
Strategy
1. I built the brand around the core concept: “Mood Over Volume.”
2. Used poetic copywriting to create emotional depth and narrative cohesion.
3. Developed an analog-inspired visual system — retro typography, warm tones, and aged textures.
4. Integrated sensory storytelling through sound, scent, and visual texture.
5. Maintained consistency from logo to lifestyle content, from menus to social reels.
Design Challenges
1. Capturing analog warmth in digital formats without losing soul.
2. Balancing vintage aesthetic with modern refinement.
3. Making every element — from logo to lighting — feel intentionally slow, human, and tactile.
4. Building a sensory-driven brand that could live consistently across physical and digital mediums.
My Design Approach
1. I built a clear visual direction that combined retro-inspired typography, warm color palettes, and textured design elements to bring out the brand’s nostalgic and soulful personality.
2. To create content that matched the brand’s atmosphere, I used AI-generated photography as part of my art direction process —
guiding it with detailed prompts and refining each image to match the mood, tone, and aesthetic I had in mind.
3. Every brand touchpoint — from digital posts to print menus — was designed to feel familiar, warm, and emotionally connected. The entire system worked together across print and digital in a consistent and thoughtfully crafted way.
Fun Part
Designing a cocktail menu as a cassette tape insert, writing poetic drink descriptions like “If sunshine had a flavor…”, and creating moody, film-inspired visuals that feel like a vinyl sleeve or a memory left in a jacket pocket.
Content & Art Direction
To bring the Cassette experience to life visually, I used AI tools to craft art direction and content mockups that reflected the brand’s cinematic tone. From lighting to composition, every piece was designed to feel like a frame from an analog memory — intimate, curated, and timeless.
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If you’re building a brand that deserves thoughtful, soulful design — let’s talk.
📩 mannromal@gmail.com