SIR THORNEY

Byron has, by far, some of the most confusing branding I’ve ever seen. This isn’t unintentional, Byron utilises an unconventional approach, relying on being dynamic and inconsistent in order to keep the brand fresh in the eyes of both potential and existing customers.

Typography, colours, imagery; Byron’s logo has transformed numerous times over the years. So much, in fact, that I struggled to find all of their past logos. The inconsistencies also apply to their restaurants’ designs. Whilst there are similarities between each, they each have differing signage, interior design & colours.

Their marketing department refers to this approach as “anti-branding”.

Whether or not the anti-branding is an effective form of advertising is up for debate. On one hand, Byron’s impressive growth over its 13 years of existence is a testament to them doing something right. On the other hand, once Byron grew to be a national burger chain, the confusing nature of its branding likely meant it missed the opportunity to stick in the minds of potential customers.

When I first visited Byron it was a marketing itself as a more adult themed burger restaurant. Its selection of booze was impressive, and all of their milkshakes had alcoholic versions. This really captured a niché in my hometown that other burger restaurants weren’t. Since then, their branding and menu has changed several times, generally becoming a more family friendly brand.

Sure, the current Byron branding will probably be fine, but the adult burger chain I was introduced to felt like a more unique and memorable concept. Moving away from a mature brand to something more family friendly may seem like a smart way of expanding Byron’s appeal, but in the end it just resulted in Byron becoming the same as every other generic burger chain.

---