What I worked on:
Creative Direction, Research & Visual Concept, Menu Design, Print Artworking, Digital Assets.
The Gleneagles hotel dates back over 100 years, opening under the ownership of a railway company to encourage visits to rural Scotland. In celebration of this heritage, an afternoon tea menu inspired by a leisurely train journey from London to Perthshire featured courses representing different stops on the line. I created a visual direction and printed collateral imbued with this rich history, then executed digital assets to market this one-of-a-kind experience.
Tea in the Glendevon room. Photography: Alex Baxter. Art Direction: Rosie Conroy and Alex Dewar.
I took inspiration from the Glendevon room where the tea would be served, studying its architecture to uncover visual motifs. Through archival research, I uncovered train liveries and ephemera, providing a treasure trove of aesthetic cues to immerse guests in the world of the glamorous 1920s journey.
A moodboard, serving as inspiration for the Afternoon Tea.
The menu's cover. Having a separate cover to the interior enables the team to update the menu easily, helping with costs and sustainability by protecting internal pages and reducing the number of full reprints.
The embossed and foiled cover creates an immediately luxurious impression. The vibrant blue colour and radial design reference the liveries of the Caledonian Express, on which many visitors to Scotland in the 1920s would have travelled.
Turning the page, guests metaphorically enter the train. A pattern inspired by moquette (the lively designs of upholstered train seats) and Art Deco book covers adorns the menu's end papers. The pattern also echoes the geometric prints found in the interior design of the Glendevon room.
The menu's interior.
The menu's inner spread.
A series of die-cuts reference the bespoke ephemera found on luxury trains in the 1920s. The cuts and typography which gently arc across the page also evoke the rolling hills which surround Gleneagles. Within the menu, frames for descriptive stories about railway history lightly nod to the gridded design of train tracks.
Colourful papers further the ideas of layering and craft – a pull-out Champagne list on sorbet yellow strikingly contrasts the natural tones of the main menu.
Other printed items include: sweet tins as parting gifts, an envelope-style billfold, and smaller copies of the menu to take away as keepsakes.
The existing design elements informed a design system which rolled-out across other collateral. This enabled each item to feel consistent. Maintaining a level of bespoke craft and attention to detail ensured a considered, intentional feel throughout.
Instagram posts promoting the afternoon tea.
Following a photoshoot, social assets were created using the brand elements to tell the story of the hotels' railway heritage. Many guests are returning customers with strong brand loyalty, so providing a deeper level of insight felt an appropriate level of engagement.
The gold foiling of the sweet tin enhances the nostalgic, luxurious feel.