Forging a new identity for the farrier trade.
The image of cowboys on horseback, driving cattle across the prairie, is one that most people equate with the early portion of American history. Most of us certainly don’t ride a horse to work anymore, and it has been a long time since the average American owned a horse-drawn carriage. Not surprisingly most people may not recognize the need for qualified Farriers in the modern world, but according to a 2007 census by the American Horse Council, there are currently over 9 million horses in the United States. A lot of those horses need shoes.
West Coast Farriers is an Oregon company that is dedicated to both quality horseshoeing services and, through their Oregon Farrier School, the education and training of people who wish to become farriers themselves. WCF met with us at the very beginning of their planning stage, allowing us the opportunity to develop all the necessary materials at once. They wanted to make sure that their first year of classes would be a success and they knew that attractive marketing would be a valuable asset.
We started by developing logos for their three divisions, West Coast Farriers, Oregon Farrier School, and Farrier’s Choice. The logos convey a feeling of quality and careful attention to detail, consistent with the way West Coast Farriers does business. The style and color palette is distinctly Western and we took care to continue with that throughout the materials.
Since we knew in advance that we were going to be creating a wide range of materials, we were able to keep the different pieces in mind as we created each one in order to increase our efficiency and maximize the consistency of the pieces. To date, we have produced stationery, folders, websites, catalogs, tradeshow displays, and even a newsletter.
The West Coast Farriers crew also went on a tour of Oregon over the summer and made sure to put their materials in front of as many people as possible; at rodeos and fairs all over the state. Getting the word out, and getting people directed to their website was a very important step in the launch of the Oregon Farrier School.
Their business has taken off nicely… the Oregon Farrier School’s classes are booking up with students from across the nation, and they are already taking reservations into 2010. The use of modern marketing materials is giving a boost to a centuries-old craft, and filling a need in a market that has remained important to the National economy in the 21st century.
Some of the materials created for West Coast Farriers …
