Studio IV
Nostalgic analogue for the in-touch crowd looking for freedom form the binds of social and AI slop.
Shorlisted for a Creativepool brand award
Create a nightlife brand with its own front door, while still feeling like it belongs under Mollie’s
Studio IV sits beneath Mollie’s Manchester, inside the former Granada Studios. The brief was to shape a cocktail bar and live entertainment venue with a distinct voice, built for Gen Z media and socialites but welcoming to music fans of any age. It needed to nod to Mollie’s without becoming a carbon copy, and to feel like an antidote to digital overload. In eight weeks, we set the strategy, naming and full identity system, then rolled it out across every guest touchpoint.
A semi-associated identity built on analogue cues, music structure, and a name with local broadcast history
Research and benchmarking
We mapped the nightlife set in Manchester and beyond, looking at how music bars signal credibility, intimacy and edge. Then we benchmarked tone, visual codes and guest experience, so Studio IV could feel current without chasing trends. The aim was clear positioning, not noise.
Naming and meaning
Studio IV draws from the famous Granada Studios reference, “going live now to studio 4”. It anchors the venue in place and culture, with the right hint of broadcast theatre. It also set up a world of copy lines that link back to rhythm, beats and frequency.
Identity with dual cues
As a branding consultancy, we designed a mark that works hard. It can read as IV or as an M, a subtle nod to Mollie’s for those who notice. The structure is built from four stripes per section, with three sets of four, a hidden 12-bar blues reference that ties the brand back to music craft.
The identity leans into vintage analogue design, with a seventies feel that still reads sharp in a contemporary space. A moss and soft lime palette was developed from fixed historical elements in the building, including the windows. Photography and video were colour graded to feel like cult film stills, with scan lines to add an original, recorded texture. No AI imagery. Typography, layout grids and motion details were kept disciplined, letting the logo’s rhythm and the copy lines do the talking.
From entrance to encore, the brand shows up wherever guests look
We applied the system across the full venue experience, from signage and wayfinding to menus, uniforms and social content. The dedicated street entrance needed instant recognition, while the interior touchpoints built a more intimate world, from the VIP bar and snug through to the terrace. Digital design, campaign assets, videos and animations carried the analogue feel, with graded imagery and scan-line treatments. Copy played with music structure, like “4 beats and then off to the bar”, 4/4 references and “night frequency”, to keep it confident and human.
Result:
A nightlife identity that feels rooted in Manchester, recognisable in a second, and richer the closer you look
Studio IV now has a clear point of view, analogue and live, built as a response to digital fatigue. The semi-associated architecture means it can sit naturally beneath Mollie’s while still feeling like its own venue. The name and logo give staff and guests something to talk about, which matters in a space designed for socialising.
The output was delivered in eight weeks, covering research, strategy, brand design, guidelines, uniforms, menus, signage and wayfinding, social media design, photography, plus video and animation assets. The result is a complete toolkit that supports consistent rollout across physical and digital touchpoints, with enough flexibility for programming, DJs and live performance.
Studio IV launched as a dedicated venue beneath Mollie’s Manchester, with its own street entrance and a clear semi-associated relationship to the parent brand. As a branding agency and branding company, we delivered the full brand system and guidelines, then produced the core assets needed to open the doors and keep the brand consistent night to night, from wayfinding and menus to uniforms and social templates. Motion and video treatments were designed to keep the analogue feel intact across screens, without relying on AI-generated imagery.
DISCIPLINESYou might also like
A research-led rebrand built for national cut-through and public recall
Electrical Safety First exists to protect the UK public from electrical risk, and that risk is only increasing as electricity becomes more embedded in everyday life. The brand had started to feel dated and, more importantly, inconsistent across campaigns, conferences and microsites. Before jumping to design, we ran a full audit, benchmarks, plus quantitative and qualitative research to understand the scale of the problem, and the opportunity if the charity chose to change.