Wala Sabi

Brand Identity, Advertising

Wala Sabi is a branding identity showing a new and exciting food truck fusion celebrating the cultural combinations of Japan and India.

Wala Sabi is a cultural combination of both India and Japan to create an adventurous identity for a food truck fusion. Our core idea derived through research on how different appreciations for food is shown around the world in different cultures, especially through hand gestures. This concept has led to an identity being built purely on cultural tradition with a modern twist illustrated through vibrant colour, a versatile logo and an interesting tone of voice.

Wala Sabi's name derived from each culture. 'Wala' comes from the Indian word for 'taxi' which we felt was appropriate as we're based in a moving truck and never in one place. 'Sabi' came from the Japanese side for flavour, by abbreviating the word 'Walasabi' which is key in Japanese dishes and important to our cuisine.

Our secondary hand gesture logo can be applied to different forms of advertising. This logo is versatile in three ways linking to our core influence of gestures. In it's primary state, it shows a 'W' for our brand name however, when reflected, it turns into a lotus flower which is traditional to India's appreciation. Finally, when flipped horizontally, the logo becomes a heart linking to Japan's pease gesture symbol.

We designed a fully custom illustrated typeface inspired by elements of both Japanese and Indian scripts. By deconstructing characters from each language into individual shapes, we were able to reassemble them into a typeface that aligned with the structure of the English alphabet. This approach allowed us to create a design that felt authentic and culturally resonant, bridging the visual essence of both languages in a harmonious and meaningful way. These shapes were then also applied to a brand pattern which we used across many assets.

Our brand stretch went beyond simply using hand gestures as inspiration — we took it a step further by creating a unique ordering system based on specific hand gestures for each dish. This interactive approach provided customers with a tactile and immersive experience, setting the food truck apart as a truly one-of-a-kind dining experience.