Faculty Focus - Holly Robbins | Minneapolis College of Art and Design

MASD instructor Holly Robbins talks about the partnership and recent work she did with naming firm Pollywog.

Discover Westopolis!

We're sharing some recent work. We teamed up with naming firm Pollywog to rename and rebrand “Discover St. Louis Park”, the destination marketing organization that attracts visitors to St. Louis Park and Golden Valley, Minnesota. The new name and visual brand identity better captures the vibrant, cosmopolitan feel and convenient location of these two cities that lay directly west of downtown Minneapolis and will make it easier to market the two cities as one great destination.

Why “Westopolis”? The name is a contraction of “West of Minneapolis” and proudly positions the area as a lively, urban place. The name emphasizes one of their key attributes: being the closest city to downtown Minneapolis with super convenient access to the city and the rest of the Metro. As a bonus, the new name also helps dispel any confusion with St. Louis, Missouri — and it’s just fun to say!

The bold, poppy visual identity hints at the fabulous view of the city skyline from the near West side and a denser, bustling vibe. The angles of the letterforms also suggest that one can stay in St. Louis Park and Golden Valley and sample all Minneapolis has to offer, or the reverse. The fun goes both ways.

The teams at Discover St. Louis Park and Pollywog, a Naming Agency were engaged, thoughtful, and full of valuable insights and a drive to get it right, which helped make this project such a success. “Westopolis perfectly represents the vibrancy of our community and its proximity to downtown Minneapolis," Becky Bakken, President and CEO of @westopolismn, said in their press release. "This name change is more than just a new identity; it's a powerful statement about our destination's strategic location and compelling offerings."

More of this project to come. If you haven’t been to the St. Louis Park-Golden Valley area for a while, you should check it out! Learn more at https://lnkd.in/gZDW6bjZ.