We helped Bergs Bazaar renew its visual identity, wayfinding system, environmental communication and digital presence – creating a clearer, more consistent and easier-to-manage brand system for a historic quarter in the centre of Riga.
Project Overview
Client: Bergs Bazaar / Berga Bazārs
Service: Place branding, visual identity, wayfinding, environmental graphics, website, online brand guidelines.
Activities: Research, workshops, tenant interviews, brand strategy, logo refinement, identity system, map system, signage, tenant guidelines, environmental communication, website design, WordPress handoff, online brandbook.
Industry: Historic commercial quarter, hospitality, retail, restaurants, services, urban destination.
Location: Riga, Latvia
Live website: https://bergabazars.lv/
Brand guidelines: https://brand.bergabazars.lv/
The Challenge
Bergs Bazaar already had a strong atmosphere, a recognizable name and a valuable historic setting. The challenge was to make the quarter easier to understand, navigate and communicate, without losing the quiet, authentic and non-commercial character that made it special.
The existing visual communication was fragmented across different signs, maps, windows, tenant materials and digital channels. Visitors did not always understand where to go, tenants had different ways of presenting themselves, and the historic value of the quarter was not always visible enough in the environment.
About the place-brand challenge
The goal was not to make Bergs Bazaar feel like a shopping mall. That would have been the wrong direction. The quarter needed a system that could organize information, improve visibility and support tenants, while still respecting the architectural character and slower, more refined atmosphere of the place.
The project had to solve several connected problems at once:
- Make the entrances more visible and inviting.
- Improve visitor orientation inside the quarter.
- Redesign the map and wayfinding logic.
- Create a more consistent system for tenant signs and window communication.
- Bring more structure to environmental information.
- Make the history of the quarter more visible.
- Build a digital platform that could be easier to update.
- Create brand guidelines that would help the system stay consistent over time.
The result had to feel practical, not decorative. Bergs Bazaar needed a working place-brand system that could support daily use, visitor flow, tenant communication, and future development.
Research, Workshops and Tenant Interviews
Before moving into design, we worked closely with the owners of the quarter and involved the people who used the place every day. The process included workshops, on-site research, environmental audits and tenant interviews.
The tenant survey was especially important. It gave tenants a structured way to share their needs, frustrations and ideas about visibility, signage, visitor navigation, window communication and the overall identity of Bergs Bazaar.
More about the research process
The research phase helped move the project away from assumptions. Instead of treating the redesign as a purely visual exercise, we looked at how the quarter actually functioned.
We reviewed the existing environment, entrances, signs, maps, tenant windows, information stands, historical content and visitor orientation points. We also met tenants on site and collected feedback about how customers found them, what kind of information they needed to show, and what would help visitors move through the area more confidently.
The tenant feedback showed that many visitors found businesses through word of mouth, Google, direct calls or by asking tenants for directions. This made it clear that the wayfinding system and digital presence had to work together. The quarter needed to become easier to discover before arrival and easier to understand once visitors were there.
The research also confirmed something valuable: Bergs Bazaar was appreciated for its calm atmosphere, history, authenticity and personal scale. These qualities became the foundation of the strategy.
Brand Strategy and Positioning
The strategy positioned Bergs Bazaar as a calm, authentic and carefully curated urban destination. It had to become more accessible and visible, but without becoming loud, commercial or generic.
The design direction focused on a balance between heritage, clarity and daily usability. The quarter needed to feel organized and welcoming, while preserving its quiet premium character.
The strategic direction
The strategic work defined Bergs Bazaar not as a single store, restaurant area or office complex, but as a living urban quarter with many layers: history, tenants, visitors, hospitality, services, architecture and local stories.
The key idea was to strengthen what was already there:
- A quiet oasis in the city centre.
- An authentic place with history, people and stories.
- A curated environment for visitors who appreciate personal service and a slower rhythm.
This direction helped avoid two wrong extremes. On one side, the brand could not become too luxurious and closed. On the other, it could not become too casual, loud or commercial. The right direction was accessible quality: refined, calm, human and easy to experience.
This strategic foundation guided the visual identity, map logic, signage, website structure, tenant guidelines and online brandbook.
Logo Evolution and Visual Identity
The visual identity was refreshed to respect the history of Bergs Bazaar while making the brand easier to use across signage, maps, digital channels and tenant communication.
The work was not about replacing the past with something unrelated. It was about creating a clearer and more usable identity system that could connect heritage with modern communication needs.
About the identity system
Rebrand
Logo since 2001
The logo work started from the existing identity and its historical associations. Bergs Bazaar already had recognition, so the new system had to feel like an evolution rather than a break.
We refined the visual language to make it more consistent, flexible and suitable for different touchpoints: exterior signage, maps, tenant materials, environmental graphics, printed communication, website and online guidelines.
The identity system also included supporting elements such as typography, colors, icons and usage rules. These were important because the brand did not live only on a website or business card. It had to work in real space, on walls, windows, freestanding map stands, tenant signs and practical visitor information.
The result is a visual system that feels connected to the historical character of the quarter, but is structured enough for everyday use.
Wayfinding, Maps and Environmental Graphics
One of the key parts of the project was the redesign of the map and wayfinding system. The quarter needed clearer orientation, more visible information points and a better way to help visitors understand where they were and where to go next.
We developed a new map logic, reorganized the numbering system and introduced a clearer structure for dividing the territory. This helped turn the map from a passive information board into a practical visitor tool.
The map and visitor journey
The previous maps were not working well enough as navigation tools. They were difficult to notice, overloaded with information and not simple enough to update. This created a practical problem: if the map was not useful, visitors relied on phone calls, Google or asking tenants for directions.
The new system approached wayfinding as a visitor journey. It looked at what people need to understand at the entrances, at crossing points, near tenant areas and inside the quarter.
The solution included:
- A clearer map structure.
- Territory division by color.
- Updated numbering logic.
- More visible map stands.
- Directional signs at key decision points.
- Entrance information.
- A more organized way to show tenants and places.
- Templates for updating map content in the future.
The aim was to make Bergs Bazaar easier to enter, easier to explore and easier to remember.
Tenant Signs, Windows and Shared Visual Rules
Bergs Bazaar brings together many independent tenants, each with its own identity. The task was not to make all tenants look the same. The task was to create shared rules that would protect the atmosphere of the quarter while still allowing each tenant to stay visible.
We created guidelines for tenant signs, window communication and environmental presentation, helping the quarter feel more coherent without removing individuality.
More about tenant communication
The tenant system had to solve a delicate balance. If every tenant communicates completely differently, the environment starts to feel visually fragmented. But if the rules are too strict, the place loses the personal character that makes it interesting.
The guidelines helped define what should be shown, where it should be placed and how it should visually relate to the wider Bergs Bazaar environment.
The system covered practical questions such as:
- Where tenants can place their logo.
- How tenant signs should relate to the building and shared environment.
- How windows can show activity without becoming visually overloaded.
- How to avoid overly commercial or aggressive advertising.
- How to keep the overall street-level impression calm, clear and welcoming.
- How to use tenant identities in a way that respects both the tenant brand and the quarter brand.
This gave Bergs Bazaar a more consistent shared visual language while still allowing cafés, restaurants, shops, offices and services to keep their own character.
History and Environmental Storytelling
Bergs Bazaar has a strong historical layer, but that value was not always easy for visitors to notice or understand. Part of the project was to make the story of the place more visible through environmental communication and supporting materials.
The aim was to connect the refreshed identity with the heritage of the quarter, not only through the logo, but also through content, signage and visitor information.
About heritage communication
The historical layer of Bergs Bazaar is one of its strongest assets. It gives the place depth, credibility and emotional value. But history only works as a brand asset when it is visible, understandable and connected to the visitor experience.
We looked at how historical information could become part of the environment instead of remaining separate from it. This included informational materials about the quarter, the logo, the territory and the renewal process.
The communication had to be informative, but not museum-like. It needed to support the atmosphere of the place and give visitors small moments of discovery.
This helped position Bergs Bazaar not only as a place to visit, eat or shop, but as a historic Riga destination with its own identity and story.
Website and Digital Presence
The website was redesigned as a practical digital platform for Bergs Bazaar. It needed to present the quarter, tenants, visitor information and updates in a way that was easier for the client to manage over time.
The focus was not only on a better-looking website. The goal was to create a structure that could support ongoing communication and make content updates easier after handoff.
More about the website structure and handoff
Bergs Bazaar needed a website that could work as a living content platform, not a static presentation. The site had to support tenants, visitor information, news, places, services and the wider story of the quarter.
The structure was planned so that the client could continue updating content without needing to rebuild pages manually each time. This was important because Bergs Bazaar changes over time: tenants change, events happen, information needs to be updated, and the map or directory may need adjustments.
The website supports the larger brand system by connecting digital information with the physical experience of the quarter. Visitors can understand what Bergs Bazaar offers before arriving, and the client has a clearer platform for maintaining the quarter’s communication.
In this sense, the website became part of the wayfinding and communication system, not a separate digital brochure.
Online Brandbook
The brandbook was developed as an online guideline platform, giving the client and collaborators one place to access the core identity rules and visual assets.
This helped make the brand easier to maintain after the project, especially because Bergs Bazaar involves many different touchpoints: owners, tenants, designers, suppliers, sign makers and digital content updates.
The current online brandbook presents itself as the online version of the Bergs Bazaar brand guidelines, created to introduce users to the basic principles and usage of the visual identity. It also states that correct use of the guidelines supports sustainable brand communication
More about the online brand guidelines
Instead of leaving the identity only as a static PDF, the brandbook was turned into a practical online tool. This made the system easier to access and easier to share with everyone involved in maintaining the brand.
The online brandbook includes the logic of the identity, usage principles, environmental direction, visual examples, gallery materials and downloads. This is especially useful for a place brand because the identity is not controlled by one person or one department.
Different people may need to apply the system in different contexts: a tenant sign, a map update, a website section, a printed material, a temporary notice or a visual communication piece. The online brandbook gives them a shared reference point.
The result is a brand system that is easier to keep consistent over time.
Final Result
The final result is a more coherent place-brand system for Bergs Bazaar, connecting identity, wayfinding, maps, signage, tenant communication, historical storytelling, website structure and online guidelines.
The project helped turn separate visual and communication elements into one connected system that supports both the atmosphere of the quarter and its practical everyday use.
Read more about the final outcome
Bergs Bazaar became easier to understand as a place. The refreshed identity gave the quarter a clearer visual foundation. The map and wayfinding system helped improve orientation. The tenant guidelines supported a more consistent shared environment. The website gave the client a more practical platform for content updates. The online brandbook made the system easier to maintain and share.
Most importantly, the project respected the existing character of Bergs Bazaar. It did not try to make the quarter louder or more commercial. It created a clearer framework for a place that already had value: history, atmosphere, quality tenants and a unique position in the centre of Riga.
The outcome is not only a refreshed visual identity. It is a practical system for how Bergs Bazaar presents itself in the city, online, in print, in the environment and through the people who use the place every day.
What We Delivered
A complete place-brand and communication system for a historic Riga quarter, covering research, strategy, identity, wayfinding, signage, tenant guidelines, website and online brand guidelines.
List of deliverables
- Workshops with the owners and project stakeholders.
- Environmental and communication audit.
- Tenant interviews and survey structure.
- Brand strategy and positioning.
- Logo refinement and visual identity system.
- Color, typography and identity usage logic.
- Icon system.
- Map redesign.
- Territory zoning and numbering logic.
- Wayfinding and directional signage.
- Freestanding map stand concepts.
- Entrance communication.
- Tenant signage guidelines.
- Window display guidelines.
- Environmental information materials.
- Historical communication materials.
- Website redesign.
- Client-friendly content handoff.
- Online brandbook.
- Downloadable brand assets and usage guidance.
