Star Trek actor William Shatner has apologised to a Devon town for saying it was “laced with prostitution” on Have I got News For You.
Mr Crabb, 49, emailed Shatner’s agents: “As Captain James T Kirk, Mr Shatner has been to places where no man has gone before, however, the episode of Have I Got News For You clearly shows he has never been to Ilfracombe.”
It’s a good bit of publicity and a godo call from Paul Crabb. Certainly better than the logo fiasco that had a local councillor saying that teenage pregnancy was a good thing!
I grew up in Ilfracombe. The cast of Coronation Street stayed at the Carlton Hotel that I lived in during the 1970’s (my parents ran it for a while), as did Titanic Tom, a survivor of the famous ship that came year after year, Lady Diana came, the Olympic torch came, arsonists came and burnt down a lot of hotels that didn’t have planning permission to be knocked down, the Pavillion went, the Cliffe Hydro went, The Mount went, the Collingwood went, the Candar went, the Ilfracombe Hotel went among others…but it still has charm even though the high street is a mess and the council seem obsessed with painting it in corporate blue.
The new logo for Ilfracombe. Do you think it looks like a sperm?
Here is the reason behind it:
New brand says “Take another look at Ilfracombe and be surprised”
Representing Ilfracombe’s business community, Ron Ley, Director of Charterwell Homes said, “It is important that Ilfracombe looks at how it currently positions itself in the market and where it would like to position itself. Ilfracombe has not always been consistently presented as the quality destination it is and it is this lack of consistency and targeting of the lower-spend market that we aim to redress.”
A considerable amount of background work and collective thinking informed the process and development of the brand. Consultants Fresh Bread Marketing had a brainstorming session
in the summer with representatives from Ilfracombe’s tourism, retail and business
communities as well as Ilfracombe Town Council and North Devon Council. They were given the difficult task of encapsulating Ilfracombe’s fascinating and appealing attributes into one logo, strapline and brand that reflects and reinforces the distinctive essence of Ilfracombe.
Fresh Bread’s Tessa Martin said, “Ilfracombe is a fresh, intriguing place to visit with an
impressive landscape. It is steeped in and continues to offer a maritime experience and has a strong cultural theme with a fascinating Victorian heritage.” She continued, “The new
Ilfracombe logo, with its idiosyncratic ‘swirl’ above the ‘i’ indicates intrigue, mystery and
drama expressed with a spot of humour and fun too. It also reflects the twists and turns of
the landscape and can conjure up thoughts of the seaside, sea, an ice-cream, the harbour and fish.”
The logo incorporates the strapline “Curious Coastal Charm” – three words that evoke some of Ilfracombe’s best characteristics. Curious reflects the intriguing, edgy elements including
its arts and events; coastal communicates harbour, paths and dining and sports
opportunities; charm evokes Ilfracombe’s community spirit and individual appeal, fun for kids, couples and families.
Further devices to enhance the brand are included in the brand identity manual as well as a new image library that includes photographs specially commissioned and some submitted in Ilfracombe Town Council’s photograph competition. They have been selected to show fresh
angles and different perspectives compelling viewers to take a second look whilst always presenting Ilfracombe as a high quality contemporary seaside destination.
Access to the logos and images is through http://www.theilfracombecentre.co.uk under the
heading ‘About Ilfracombe’. The Brand Identity Manual explains how to get the most effective expression of the Ilfracombe brand and is free to use but the strict guidelines must be followed to ensure consistency, quality and continued brand recognition.
Brand guidelines should be found here:
AMENDED: It appears as if the £40,000 wasn’t for the logo (originally read in the south devon version of the journal website) it was £5000 including the photographs. That sounds a lot more like it.
However the logo is still poor and a huge missed opportunity for Ilfracombe. The main problem we have with it is that there is actually a really good idea in there which has been missed. The strapline ‘Curious Costal Charm’ is nice. Really nice actually, mostly because at last someone has said something marketable about Ilfracombe that is actually true. The problem is that the logo doesn’t seem to relate to this in any way. I’d have been really honest about the town in a marmite/VW sort of way. Shabby around the edges, faded glories, but a real heart and beautiful if look hard enough.
As stated on various blogs, we think the logo looks a lot like a sperm on the i (or is it just us?). In a town with a high rate of teenage pregnancy were not so sure it was that wise.
You can add (and read) people memories of the town too. The church where we had our wedding blessing is there, the hotel where I partly grew up (the Carlton). It looks really stunning in Black and white and It’s incredible how big the crowds are.
Lots of pictures of the pavilion. Non of it when it had the concrete wings. None of the high street.
I wonder what pictures will be on sites like this in the future?
But what if it was turn into ‘The Green House’ to serve the community as it once did?
Original 'green wall' photo: Rory Hyde
Green wall systems absorb noise, are self irrigating, stop graffiti, help insulate the building and enhance the environment. They vary in price but are around £350 per metre square.
It’s criminal that it has been allowed to be left in this state. No shop in ANY high street should be left like this.
This is NOT acceptable.
UNLOVED BUT WITH HIDDEN BEAUTY
But what if empty shops were treated like this?
But what if estate agents used the building like a billboard:
“I could be an Old Fashioned Sweet Shop, or a Deli, or I could sell Eco Products, how about a Gift Shop?. Use your imagination. I’m next to a cinema, imagine what they might want to buy. Dvd’s?”
The door has two little holes from where you can get a sneaky preview of the shop before calling the estate agent.
This was the job centre. So it was a civil building. I can’t understand why the council would leave it in this state.
This is how it looks at the moment:
But this is how it could look if it became a Furniture Store:
Ilfracombe should be proud of its history. Why not include a little text about the building next door? The hand points to the Old Candar Arcade and says:
“The Candar Hotel & Victorian Arcade stood next door until 1983 when they were destroyed by fire. The new buildings were opened by HRH Prince Charles & Lady Diana in their last official engagement as prince & princess of Wales in 1992.”
I actually approached the mayor of Ilfracombe with this idea in 1992 when I was a mere design graduate but he dismissed it coming up with every excuse under the sun from planning and red tape to health and safety (it may distract drivers and cause an accident!). Hopefully the local Council are more receptive to ideas these days.
This is yet another empty shop that is looking neglected. It’s a very elegant building and compared to many in the town isn’t too bad.
Bu t what if it came to life again as a kids fashion shop? We suggest calling it Jack & Jill:
Why not use the space above the shop to advertise your store. They used to years ago and the signs are decorative and can help enhance the high street, especially if they are hand painted (as this is supposed to represent).
YOUR COMMENTS (thankyou)