Explorers’ Edge

It’s estimated that every year, twelve million out-of-province tourists visit Ontario. In 2011, Haft2 was approached by ad agency Y & R Brands to conceive of a new name and identity for one of the province’s thirteen tourism regions, encompassing Algonquin Park, Almaguin Highlands, Georgian Bay Country and Muskoka. An identity was sought that would rebrand the region as a destination for lovers of extreme sports, who tend to spend a higher margin of tourist dollars than their cottaging counterparts, for which the region had come to be known.

Working with a select group of namers, as well as considering legal and domain restrictions, we narrowed down the considerations to a short list before visual exploration began. Ultimately the name Explorers’ Edge was selected, uniting in consensus key stakeholders from various partner agencies. We then added the positioning line ‘‘Naturally Adventurous’ to further reinforce the outdoor active appeal of the region.

We completed our engagement with a smaller set of guidelines that outlines usage of the logo – its colours, its graphic use etc, ensuring multiple users across various industries have the clear tools to depict the graphic as needed for various audiences, in the hopes of attracting them to this active region.