In the midst of what’s expected to be a banner year for tourism in southeastern Wisconsin, Visit Milwaukee is putting its best foot forward with an entirely new corporate logo, website design, messaging and advertising campaigns.
The rebrand effort, which launched last June and was fully unveiled Tuesday, officially does away with Visit’s former logomark depicting the Milwaukee Art Museum’s iconic wings, known as the Burke Brise Soleil, which had branded the organization since 2005.
Visit’s new logo was designed to be more abstract and flexible in its use, featuring three connected “M” shapes which symbolize the city’s vibrancy, its fresh water resources and its cultural diversity.
The logo corresponds with three central messaging themes that Visit says, based on input from “thousands of Milwaukeeans,” best sum up Milwaukee’s ethos: fresh, flavor, and forward.
“These concepts are not a slogan but a guidepost, designed to clearly communicate the elements that make our city and every one of you who make our city so unique,” said Peggy Williams-Smith, president and CEO of Visit Milwaukee, at a press conference Tuesday.
The rebrand comes as Bravo’s hit cooking competition show “Top Chef” has shone the national spotlight on Milwaukee and Wisconsin’s culinary scene and as Milwaukee gears up for the 2024 Republican National Convention, which will bring 50,000 visitors — including 15,000 members of the regional, national and international media — to the city from July 15-18.
“With major media opportunities ahead of us, the time was right to seize on the momentum Milwaukee is enjoying with a bold new look,” said Josh Albrecht, Visit’s president of marketing and communications, whose team is responsible for executing the brand overhaul.
Visit’s new brand will be rolled out in all formats over the next 18 months, including but not limited to influencer campaigns, local event activations and sponsorships, a new television commercial, Visit Milwaukee’s first-ever e-commerce store selling branded merchandise, and its first-ever physical visitor center inside the newly expanded Baird Center.
As a 501(c)(6) entirely devoted to promoting Milwaukee to business and leisure travelers, Visit wants local businesses and organizations to adopt and adapt its new content and design standards for their own use “to create cohesive and inclusive positive branding to further elevate the destination’s reputation,” according to a news release. Visit even released a “partner brand kit” which further details the new branding assets and provides guidelines for copy and social media usage.
Visit relied on several sources of public input to design its rebrand over the past two years, including listening sessions with elected officials, local leaders and business improvement groups and a survey of local residents. Behind the research and community input strategy was Genyne Edwards of Milwaukee-based P3 Development, while Milwaukee-based design agency Ocupop designed the logo.
In addition, Visit has partnered with newly launched DEI-focused marketing firm Culture x Design to highlight the new brand at several events with local women and minority-led organizations throughout 2024. The events include: Fruition MKE Grand Opening; Summer of Soul: Outdoor Market & Concert Series; Fresh Coast Boat Cruise & Water Journey; Bronzeville Week; MKE Fashion Week; Blackity Black Holiday Market; and Groove Theory Concert Series. The new brand will also be on display at PrideFest, Juneteenth Day, Puerto Rican Fest and the Veterans Day Parade.
To celebrate the launch of its new look and branding approach, Visit released a new promotional video encouraging visitors to make Milwaukee their “new favorite city.” Check out the video below:
