Uruma Scuba Brand Refresher
Date
Categories
Identity
Strategy
Bilingual
Brief
Uruma Scuba is a dive shop on Henza Island, Okinawa, established in July 2021. Five years in, it sits between start-up and small business: financially stable and ready to grow. The founder initially asked for one extra, more versatile logo for merchandise. The original had a detailed illustration and the shop’s name locked inside a shape. It worked well on stickers, but couldn’t be scaled or adapted to other physical and digital formats without added cost. With no documented personality or tone of voice, marketing and messaging also varied depending on whether the founder or staff were posting. The brief grew into an end-to-end identity refresh, brand strategy and rollout of physical and digital collateral.
Outcome
The result is a Logo and Brand Mark inspired by the ribbon eel, a reef local that is blue and yellow as an adult and orange and black as a juvenile. Both hold up at small sizes, work on light or dark backgrounds and, without the boxed shape, fit narrow formats like mask strap sleeves. The identity grows into a six-colour palette built on the original blues, oranges and yellows, English and Japanese typefaces, a brain coral pattern and a playful personality that extends the founder’s. It rolled out across business and shop cards, a logbook stamp, stickers and ad tiles, all collected in a brand style guide so the founder and staff can post in one consistent voice.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Client Testimonial
Takato Okohira
Founder of Uruma Scuba
Our collaboration actually began with a single request: I wanted to design an additional logo for custom merchandise alongside our existing brand logo. However, Kaito took the time to truly understand my needs and clearly explained why brand identity is so critical for market presence. Rather than just taking orders or executing tasks, Kaito approached our work like a true strategic consultant. I was deeply impressed by his exceptional level of professionalism. The final deliverables exceeded my highest expectations. The result left us genuinely thrilled and inspired for the future of our company. I wholeheartedly and enthusiastically recommend Kaito to business owners across any industry, anywhere in the world.
Uruma Scuba Brand Refresher
Date
Categories
Identity
Strategy
Bilingual
Brief
Uruma Scuba is a dive shop on Henza Island, Okinawa, established in July 2021. Five years in, it sits between start-up and small business: financially stable and ready to grow. The founder initially asked for one extra, more versatile logo for merchandise. The original had a detailed illustration and the shop’s name locked inside a shape. It worked well on stickers, but couldn’t be scaled or adapted to other physical and digital formats without added cost. With no documented personality or tone of voice, marketing and messaging also varied depending on whether the founder or staff were posting. The brief grew into an end-to-end identity refresh, brand strategy and rollout of physical and digital collateral.
Outcome
The result is a Logo and Brand Mark inspired by the ribbon eel, a reef local that is blue and yellow as an adult and orange and black as a juvenile. Both hold up at small sizes, work on light or dark backgrounds and, without the boxed shape, fit narrow formats like mask strap sleeves. The identity grows into a six-colour palette built on the original blues, oranges and yellows, English and Japanese typefaces, a brain coral pattern and a playful personality that extends the founder’s. It rolled out across business and shop cards, a logbook stamp, stickers and ad tiles, all collected in a brand style guide so the founder and staff can post in one consistent voice.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Process
Early concept sketches used the organic shapes of the ocean to form the shop’s initials, and the founder asked to see them reworked with a ribbon eel. He chose the slanted composition straight away and preferred to keep the existing colours over new palettes. Local customs also shaped the collateral: in Japan, businesses hand out shop cards, so the print design split into two small formats instead of a brochure.
Client Testimonial
Takato Okohira
Founder of Uruma Scuba
Our collaboration actually began with a single request: I wanted to design an additional logo for custom merchandise alongside our existing brand logo. However, Kaito took the time to truly understand my needs and clearly explained why brand identity is so critical for market presence. Rather than just taking orders or executing tasks, Kaito approached our work like a true strategic consultant. I was deeply impressed by his exceptional level of professionalism. The final deliverables exceeded my highest expectations. The result left us genuinely thrilled and inspired for the future of our company. I wholeheartedly and enthusiastically recommend Kaito to business owners across any industry, anywhere in the world.
