Scotch Whisky Heritage no more?

Apparently the Scotch Whisky Heritage Centre is changing its name.

This news doesn't come from The SWHC, but from a press release from Nevis Design Consultants, an Edinburgh-based design firm.

The new name will apparently be The Scotch Whisky Experience which is a little cheesy for my taste, and doesn't have the cache of Scotch Whisky Heritage Center...but then again, no one asked me.

Any evidence of the name change or any mention of it has yet to make it to the Heritage Centre site

Read on for details...

Nevis Rebrands The Scotch Whisky Experience

Nevis Design Consultants

26/10/2006

The Scotch Whisky Experience, formerly the Scotch Whisky Heritage Centre (SWHC) was launched in July 1987 in Edinburgh, when 19 individual Scotch Whisky companies jointly invested £2m to create a permanent exhibition of the history and development of Scotch whisky. Since then the SWHC has developed into one of Scotland’s most iconic visitor attractions offering a range of fascinating products and services.

Coinciding with its 18th year in business, The Scotch Whisky Experience is embarking on the most ambitious investment project of its history. Over £2 million pounds will be spent over the next two years with a view to raising the venue’s status from a 5-star visitor attraction to a world-class experience.

The development of the venue will consist of a three-stage campaign:

Stage one, completed in June 2006 and costing £400,000, focused on improving the centre’s frontage with a striking new glass entrance feature, LED lit window displays and major stonework repairs.  In addition, the Scotch Whisky Experience has embarked on an ambitious rebranding campaign so expect to see a fresh look, with a new name – The Scotch Whisky Experience, rebranding and implementation. Much of this work is being undertaken by Edinburgh-based Nevis Design Consultants.

Having undertaken an exhaustive research project involving several creative and PR agencies, the most positive results refocused on the Scotch Whisky Experience’s recent revamp of their in-house restaurant completed by Nevis.

The Amber restaurant concept was based on using feature ingredients of many of the dishes. Images of whisky coulee-like droplets (amber jewels) drizzled around a plate, was designed to form a bold identity that informed passers-by that the centre had a restaurant in the basement.

The problem of communicating to a passing audience was also at the forefront of branding issues for the renamed Scotch Whisky Experience. With many of the Centre’s visitors being foreign tourists (on their way to or returning from Edinburgh Castle), it was crucial to create a bold visual element, avoiding the possible language barriers. Nevis were asked to reinterpret the original Amber branding for The Scotch Whisky Experience with SWE appearing to be the parent of the original Amber brand. Individual droplets were shot again, this time they would appear more three-dimensional and be more whisky-generic in colour. A stacked asymmetric logotype used the same typeface as Amber, again to reinforce the relationship.

As well as the usual requirements, the new branding will appear on items ranging from presentation materials, way-finding, to various packaging projects. The second and third stages, costing £600,000 and £1 million pounds respectively, will be an enhancement to the centre’s Scotch Whisky tour, and the iconic barrel ride. The Scotch Whisky tour, due for completion February 2007, will introduce a more sensory experience for visitors, represented through touch, taste, sound and smell.

The barrel ride, due for completion at the start of 2008, will undergo a complete overhaul, with improvements to the content and theme of the ride. The aim is to provide an entertaining and interesting education about whisky production in Scotland.