The original massage parlour had operated for several years but found itself boxed in by lacklustre branding, thus failing to differentiate itself from the fierce competition locally. As such, the business owner approached EQ for a full suite of creative services that extended to every corner of the brand, including but not limited to rethinking the brand name, industry positioning and the overarching philosophy underpinning the business.

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Creative Strategy

Through extensive market research and focus group testing, we identified some key gaps in the market for massage therapy, chief among them being a widespread perception of massage as an occasional splurge on self-care; as well as a polarisation of brands between the low end and premium end of the market, without any businesses that featured an elevated offering at affordable prices. As such, we focused our efforts on realigning the client's business as an urban retreat that espoused massage therapy as an all-encompassing lifestyle, with Hong Kong's professional class in mind. In much the same way that people go to the gym on a regular basis, we sought to paint massage therapy in a similar manner, as a form of personal care and maintenance that is essential to a healthy lifestyle. Based on these considerations, we settled ona name for the brand that encapsulated this unique philosophy: the Slow.

Results

We distilled the many elements of the brand into a promise to the customer: to maximise health and happiness through massage therapy. More than just a business, The Slow sees itself as the beginning of a new way of living, centered around stepping back from the everyday grind and investing in self-care and nourishment of the mind and body through massage.
Stemming from these guiding principles, we created a look and voice that focused above all on providing breathing space to the customer, offering a refreshing counterpoint to the hectic urban lifestyle of a major city.

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