Gowling WLG is an international law firm formed in 2016 through the combination of Canada-based Gowlings and UK-based Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co (WLG).[1] The firm’s visual identity, including its logo, was created by the brand design agency Ove as part of a complete rebranding effort for the newly combined entity.[2]
Design and History
When Gowlings and Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co combined to form Gowling WLG, the new firm engaged Ove to develop a brand strategy, brand identity, and visual identity system.[2] The project was delivered in collaboration with agencies across the Publicis network, including Nurun, MSL Group UK, Publicis Toronto and Publicis Montreal.[2]
Ove’s design solution was a logo built from a series of concentric circles, described by the agency as resembling camera shutters. The shape was intended to depict the idea of focus, a “lens” that brings the world of Gowling WLG’s clients into focus, highlighting the symbolic relationship the firm has with its clients.[2] This concentric-circle motif became the heart of the visual identity system, and was overlaid on images and colour planes across the firm’s communications.[2]
The brand launch, which included the new logo, website and advertising, was completed within about eight months of the combination decision, according to David Fennell, then chief executive of Gowling WLG UK.[3] The new identity was introduced alongside the tagline “In Tune with Your World”, also developed by Ove.[2]
Meaning and Symbolism
The concentric circles in the Gowling WLG logo were designed to symbolise focus, representing a lens that brings the client’s world into focus.[2] This concept was rooted in research conducted by Ove, including focus groups, workshops, leader interviews and competitor audits, which found that close, long-term client relationships were the defining strength of both legacy firms.[2]
The brand positioning behind the identity was built on the idea that legal advisors must understand their clients’ business and industry, their “world”, to serve them effectively.[2] Fennell described the new brand as centred on the core promise of being “in tune with our clients’ worlds, aligned with their opportunities and genuinely ambitious for their success.”[3]
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