Edarah Branding with Cultural Depth
An Overview
I was assigned to lead the branding of Edarah, a Saudi holding company overseeing several subsidiaries. In collaboration with a team based in Saudi Arabia, my goal was to develop a full visual identity that captured Edarah’s heritage, authority, and structure — culminating in a brand system and interactive landing page.
This project gave me a unique opportunity to reconnect with Arabic calligraphy and apply it in a modern, strategic context. The challenge was to create something culturally rich yet visually streamlined, honoring tradition while building something bold and contemporary.
Concept and Direction
The branding concept centered around the Arabic word Edarah (إدارة), crafted in Thuluth script — a historic calligraphic style used in important documents and in the Saudi flag. This choice rooted the brand in cultural legacy and national pride.
To represent the subsidiaries under Edarah’s umbrella, I incorporated tashkeel (diacritical marks), which serve a dual function: they complete the phonetic structure of the word and symbolically express the child entities as part of a unified system. The result was a mark that is both linguistic and conceptual — simple in form, deep in meaning.
The Identity
The identity system included logo variations, placement rules, and detailed usage guidelines. The main lockup is vertical, combining the wordmark and symbol, but alternate horizontal and type-only versions were developed to ensure flexibility. Strict clear space and misuse rules were defined to protect the integrity of the logo across all mediums.
The color palette consists of a rich, symbolic trio: Navy Blue, Platinum Grey, and a Royal Gold gradient. These reflect trust, sophistication, and prestige. Secondary colors were introduced for web and functional roles but kept minimal in marketing use. A visual stacking system guided the layering of dark and light variants to balance modern and classic tones consistently.
Conclusion
The final identity successfully positioned Edarah as a proud, forward-facing Saudi holding group — grounded in tradition but built for modern clarity. The visual system is cohesive, respectful, and adaptable across both print and digital environments.
For me, the project was both a professional and personal milestone — a chance to bring cultural craft into the digital space and design a brand that speaks with both elegance and depth.
