The Dorchester Hotel
Jeni Ball
The Dorchester Hotel
2022—Branding
The Dorchester Hotel is a 31-room boutique property located in the heart of Collingwood, Ontario. Born out of a love for heritage and hospitality, The Dorchester is a contemporary reimagining of a historic landmark. Once a social hub in its glory days, the hotel has been revitalized as a stylish and sophisticated destination that blends old-world charm with modern sensibility.
The key objectives for the project were:
To develop a distinctive brand identity rooted in heritage but styled for modern tastes.
To create a sense of timeless sophistication that aligns with the hotel’s architecture and interior design.
To attract a target audience of urban professionals, design-conscious travellers, and couples seeking elevated weekend getaways.
To differentiate The Dorchester from existing accommodations in the region through tone, visual language, and guest experiences.
The design process included:
Research & Historical Investigation: Archive deep-dives, heritage reference gathering, competitive analysis within the Collingwood hospitality landscape.
Concept Development: Moodboards, visual direction, typographic exploration, and logo sketches that bridged old and new.
Client Presentation: A brand narrative and visual identity system was presented to the client, supported by rationale grounded in both heritage and modern hospitality trends.
Revisions & Refinement: Based on collaborative feedback, the final identity was refined into a polished and flexible brand system.
Final Asset Delivery: The project concluded with a comprehensive logo deck and asset handoff, ensuring the client was equipped with everything needed to bring The Dorchester to life.
Our solution was a comprehensive brand identity that seamlessly blended The Dorchester Hotel’s storied past with a sense of contemporary elegance. At the heart of the brand is a hand-drawn illustration of the hotel’s historic open-door elevator—an iconic detail that once defined the building’s grandeur. This symbol became the brand’s signature mark, representing both the hotel’s welcoming spirit and its unique place in Collingwood’s history.
Deliverables included:
Custom logomark and wordmark
Hand-drawn brand illustration
Full colour and typography system
Brand guidelines and logo usage documentation
Print-ready assets for signage, stationery, and marketing
By creating a brand that honours the charm of Collingwood’s past while offering a polished, modern guest experience, the project met its objectives and more. The Dorchester now stands not only as a beautifully restored landmark, but also as a symbol of the town’s evolving identity: cultured, welcoming, and unapologetically refined.
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Posted Jun 5, 2025
Born out of a love for heritage and hospitality, The Dorchester is a modern take on a historic treasure. This project was created alongside Mayka Marketing.
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