Penguin Random House
Who HQ

Branding

Turning a book series into a destination

Entertaining, approachable, and educational, the Who Was?, What is? and Where Is? book series have been beloved by young readers for decades. When Penguin Random House wanted to bring them all under one all-encompassing umbrella, they turned to our unique combination of publishing and branding experience to help. We created Who HQ, a new master brand that has since become a destination for young readers and educators alike.

CHALLENGE
With the popular Who Was? book series expanding into two additional book lines, What Is? and Where Is?, there was no straightforward way to refer to—or promote—the series.

INSIGHT
Our deep-dive research sessions with Penguin revealed that the young readers, parents, and educators loved the books because they ignited a sense of adventure and discovery.

APPROACH
We conceived the new brand as a comfy, familiar clubhouse from which kids could embark on those journeys, empowering them to explore new and exciting people, places, and events.

naming, logo, tagline and brand architecture
The new brand was positioned as more than a book series, but as a place, manifesting in the name and new tagline “Your Headquarters for History.” Central to the idea was that the headquarters could exist wherever Who HQ lives, from online and retail stores to classrooms and libraries. The logo was designed to suggest directional signage and a flagpole, further reinforcing the idea of Who HQ as a location.

BRAND GUIDE
From that central concept, we created the foundation of the new brand, including the brand DNA, differentiators, brand voice, and consumer and trade copy. A complete graphics palette was developed around journeys through time, with colorful, stylized timelines integrated into unique, angular patterns. It was decided that the highly appealing and recognizable “big head” illustration style of the covers would remain, while we added new color-coded branding to the covers, spines, and back covers.

“Once again, SJI hit it out of the park! I couldn’t have thought of stronger, more capable hands to entrust with building a brand narrative around our best-selling non-fiction series. SJI brought together a stellar team to deliver a smart and engaging destination from which we can continue to expand our brand across multiple platforms.” Daniel Moreton Associate Publisher, Penguin Group USA

POINT-OF-SALE, WEBSITE, AND AMAZON STOREFRONT
Point-of-sale materials were created using bright, engaging graphics to encompass the range of books under the Who HQ name. Penguin then adopted the new brand guidelines for a redesigned website, the Amazon online storefront, and all other digital touchpoints.

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