Yukon Convention Bureau

The Yukon is an incredible place. Jaw-dropping scenery, friendly people, rich culture and arts, vibrant history, and modern facilities all mean it has a lot to offer visitors. It’s also a world-class destination for meetings and events, with the Yukon Convention Bureau at the forefront of promoting the territory to interested clients.

When we were hired to redesign the Yukon Convention Bureau’s logo, it was an aside from the client that provided the foundation for our approach—as can so often be the case. Time again, we were told, YCB’s staff are asked about the northern lights. This justified doing something that is otherwise a northern cliché: including northern lights colours and influences in the logo design.

On the left, against a cream background, we can see the old Yukon Convention Bureau logo. It's chunky and a bit weirdly aligned, with a narrow serif for Yukon. The letter O has been replaced by a sort of round rectangle, black fill like the text, with a red maple leaf in the centre. Above Yukon is an angular rising line that suggests a mountain. Under Yukon is 'Convention Bureau' in Arial or Helvetica. The new logo features Yukon in a soft, rounded typeface that is bisected by a line that suggests moving aurora. The word itself uses a gradient, which here suggests the edge of aurora against a dark sky. Convention Bureau is written in a matching typeface in light green.

From sharp edges to a soft flow.

The standard version of the logo contains a gradient to simulate the edge of an aurora, with the Yukon itself bisected to simulate an aurora in motion—that way, giving a sense of movement and helping to evoke the aurora even in single colour placements.

As part of the project, we developed the new logo, a brand standards guide, business cards, a letterhead template, PowerPoint templates, and a promotional video (in association with Midnight Light Media).