Moon Creative Lab Brand Identity 2.0
About
Moon Creative Lab is a venture studio that powers the creation of new businesses.
My Role
Visual Designer collaborating with Moon's Design Director and marketing team.
Duration
05-09.2023
Brief
In 2023, Moon launched three training programs for entrepreneurs:
Moon Spark — a hands-on program where participants learn how to turn problems into tangible ideas.
Moon Boost — an incubation program that supports entrepreneurs in accelerating their startups.
Moon Orbit — a series of events where entrepreneurs can join a diverse community of new business creators.
Moon Creative Lab needed a visual identity system that would position these programs as parts of one journey, rather than as separate offerings.
The Challenge
Create sub-brands that maintained individual identity while establishing clear visual hierarchy under the parent brand—helping founders intuitively understand how the programs connected.
The system also needed to leverage Moon's equity to attract engagement from entrepreneurs already familiar with the brand.
The Process
I analyzed Moon's existing brand narrative — which centered on 'powering creation' — to identify potential visual directions.
Next, I interviewed the creative and marketing teams to understand each program’s unique value proposition and how they connect within the broader journey.
Interviews revealed a deeper challenge. Although Moon’s programs were designed to follow a natural progression, founders often joined individual modules out of context because they didn’t see the programs as a sequence — but as optional paths.
The missing link was a visual narrative that would make the progression unmistakably clear — transforming perception from 'three separate programs' to 'one entrepreneurial journey.
This became the foundation of the new identity system: make the journey visible, so participation feels continuous, not fragmented.
The Exploration
Based on this insight, I developed a concept of natural visual progression — from idea (Spark) to community (Orbit) to growth (Boost) — so that each stage would feel like a logical continuation of the previous one. This approach would encourage founders to perceive the modules as part of one holistic journey.
I explored several directions to visualize continuous progression—each concept needed to feel intuitive, ownable to Moon, and clear enough that founders could immediately grasp the sequential relationship.
Progress bar
Symbolizing forward movement and momentum.
Waxing moon
A natural metaphor for continuous growth, aligning visually and emotionally with the Moon brand.
Abstract geometric shapes
Visualizing building blocks that form a foundation for future growth.
Thin icons with bold typography
Creating a sense of connection and play, using long arrows to link challenges with solutions.
The Decision & Finalization
After evaluating options against criteria of brand alignment, founder clarity, and visual ownability, I recommended the waxing moon concept. It was the only direction that felt naturally ownable to Moon (literal brand connection), universally understood (everyone recognizes moon phases), and emotionally resonant (growth metaphor aligned with entrepreneurial journey).
The phases represent the entrepreneurial journey:
New Moon → learning phase (Spark)
Half Moon → incubation (Boost)
Full Moon → launch stage (Orbit)
The design director agreed, noting it felt like “exactly what we needed.”
To reinforce visual connection, I introduced a color gradient evolving from Moon’s original yellow to bright orange (Spark), deep orange (Boost), and finally red (Orbit).
As a result, each module retained its individuality through color and motion behavior, yet followed shared visual principles to ensure seamless recognition under the Moon umbrella.
Based on the creative direction, I created graphic assets for each module — visual design for the website, social media templates for the marketing and design teams, internal communication documents, and event space navigation.
I combined all assets into a brand guidelines document defining usage rules for each element and ensuring consistency across teams.
The Outcome
The identity system launched successfully in 2023 and remains in use, with the design director noting it helped the marketing team clearly communicate program stages to founders.
Two years later, the system continues to function effectively — demonstrating its strategic durability.
The modular structure and comprehensive guidelines also enabled Moon’s small design team to scale visual production across multiple touchpoints without requiring my ongoing involvement, proving the system’s flexibility and long-term value.