Banbury-based general agency Toast Design has developed a new identity and bespoke website for national charity The Victorian Society, which aims to attract new, younger members and become a better resource for stakeholders.
The charity uses donations to campaign to preserve and reuse historic Victorian and Edwardian buildings, saving them from demolition or destruction, and Toast Design, according to director Mark Williams, saw this as the perfect opportunity to work with an organisation that values the impact of design.
The first goal was to build a cohesive, modern brand that would raise awareness of the Victoria Society and resonate across all media platforms. The second was to devise a website that would allow for a virtual archive of the campaign’s history through past posts, while adding new content over time.
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They also worked with staff from the charity and volunteer project leader Jesse Freedman, who has web and marketing experience from Apple and Google.
In terms of strategy, Toast Design wanted to create a platform that was functional, visually appealing and future-proof, while paying tribute to the association’s rich history. “The project highlights the importance of blending tradition with innovation, allowing the association to effectively reach and engage with a wider audience base,” says Williams.
In this logo, the agency took the letters “VS” and used the white space to form a distinctive logomark. The shortened version is used where the full logo doesn’t fit, acting as a visual shorthand, and also as a watermark and graphic device on promotional materials.
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Toast Design Director Dave Foreman defines the brand’s tone of voice as “modern, unified and coherent, expressing the positive and celebratory nature of the Association’s work.”
Carried over from the previous identity is the deep blood red colour favoured by the Society’s members – the Society has also decided to use different shades of black to complement this.
Although the charity’s website was “very well received”, it had been launched 20 years ago and was described by Victorian Society director James Hughes as “aesthetically dull and technologically outdated” Toast Designs’ approach began with a thorough consultation, helping to define the goals, target audience and desired functionality with the client.
Foreman said the Victoria Society’s main goals included modernizing its look, improving the user experience, enhancing accessibility and ensuring it was mobile-friendly.
The next stage, research and planning, involved a competitive analysis and technical audit, followed by the creation of information architecture and wireframing. Toast Design not only evaluated the existing content, but also found a way to logically organize it and designed the basic layout for the main pages.
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During the design and prototyping process, the team created mood boards, style tiles, and detailed user interface designs. Other work included content strategy, editing, and media integration before moving to the final stages of development, testing, and release.
Mr Foreman said: “Working with the Victoria Society on this project has been an incredibly rewarding experience.
“We are proud of our new brand identity and website, which reflects both the Association’s traditions and forward-thinking approach. This project highlights the importance of blending tradition with innovation, enabling the Association to effectively reach and engage with a wider audience.”