POW! EIGA’s energetic brand for Hanover puts the city’s culture and community spirit in the spotlight

The capital city of the German state of Lower Saxony, Hanover is often recognised as a business hub, hosting many international trade fairs. However, it also boasts a rich cultural sector, from museums and theatres, to several independent cultural initiatives. While designing the brand for an entire city could be seen as daunting, EIGA – tasked with developing the brand and campaign for Hanover – took it in their stride, seeing it as an opportunity to showcase their expertise and process as a branding agency. “To unite the very different cultural actors of an entire metropolitan region behind a brand idea, you have to listen to people, their needs, and at the same time, inspire them with a common idea,” Founder & Managing Director Henning Otto explains. To get to the city’s heartbeat, they ran several workshops, inviting representatives from these institutions, as well as the catering industry, the business community, the trade fair, and citizens of the city of Hanover. According to Otto, these discussions not only helped the team gain valuable insights into different needs and considerations but also secured acceptance for the new brand. Highlighting design’s power as a tool for unity, he explains that “even during the strategy phase, we were able to generate enthusiasm for change without showing concrete design routes.”