Crown Creative positions The Kithmore as the heartbeat of St Andrews

The Kithmore is a boutique hotel in Scotland, located just a short walk away from the Old Course at St Andrews, which is widely considered to be the most iconic and historic golf course in the world. Ahead of its reopening, Crown Creative worked with The Marram Collection and Wirefox over a two-year partnership that covered strategic positioning, naming, brand identity, art direction and the website, as well as interior design. Hospitality is the declared specialism of the Belfast, New York and London-based design studio. The resulting positioning centres on The Kithmore as ‘the heartbeat of St Andrews’ – a hotel that’s as welcoming to locals and weekend visitors as it is to visiting golfers. Crown Creative and The Marram Collection worked together to explore the location, history and the feeling they wanted guests to have during a stay. “A new name gave us the opportunity to clearly communicate a renewed experience and ambition,” explains The Marram Collection’s Development Director, Joanne McBurney, on the decision to move away from The Ardgowan Hotel. The Kithmore comes from the Scottish term ‘kith,’ meaning familiarity and friendship. “The Kithmore stood out,” McBurney adds, “because it speaks to togetherness, connection and belonging. It feels rooted in Scottish language and culture, while also being warm, memorable and welcoming to an international audience.” During construction, fragments of original Scottish sign-painting were uncovered on a pane of glass in the property, which inspired Crown Creative’s design for the wordmark. “It was packed with character and quirks, so we studied its proportions, imperfections and hand-painted qualities, then reinterpreted these as the basis for a bespoke set of letterforms,” reveals Design Director Kate Tracey. “It remains intentionally imperfect and full of character, treading the line between a heavy heritage serif and something more playful and contemporary.”