Kingdom of Bhutan

Nation Brand for
the Kingdom of Bhutan

The Kingdom of Bhutan—the fabled Himalayan country renowned for its mountains and monasteries, rich biodiversity, and striking natural beauty—appointed MMBP & Associates as its national and international branding partner in 2022. To mark the post-covid reopening of the kingdom and to look to the future, a whole new identity for the country was created. It aims to inspire a new vision of the future to its citizens. The result reflects Bhutan’s character and landscapes, history and ambitions: bold, vivid, richly storied and utterly distinctive—rebranding it both for its people and its guests who are seeking a different travel experience. MMBP & Associates’ brand (and new campaign) is built upon the kingdom’s deeply-rooted culture, its plans, and ambitions. It offers a rallying cry to believe – in the nation’s capabilities, its vision, its values, its global contribution, its responsibilities, and its future.

THE NATION’S LOGOTYPE

Bold, Confident
Our distinct logotype is the manifestation of a bold and confident country, grounded in time-honoured traditions and a majestic landscape.

Contemporary, Clear
Clean lines create a contemporary feel, mirroring the nation’s future-facing ethos. Our logotype’s elegant and crisp expression conveys the elevated experience Bhutan offers its guests.

Traditional, Warm
With a gentle curve, our logotype alludes to the warm and grounded personality of the Bhutanese people. This timeless and organic form embodies the kingdom’s earthy character.

Legible, Scalable
Our logotype must be easy to read at every size. Clarity makes for the most powerful impact.

Responsive, Functional
Our versatile logotype is optimised for use in many formats, proportions and media. Extra care has been invested in making it work well for digital use.

THE NATION’S TAGLINE: BELIEVE

A sense of possibility greets you in Bhutan, a feeling that other ways of being in the world and experiencing life are within reach. Far from the humdrum and the hectic, removed from hollow luxury and high pressure, Bhutan is proof that happiness, connection, respite and revelation are our birthright. Restoring one’s sense of belief is the kingdom’s real gift to its visitors. The nation itself believes in a better future, led by wisdom from its past – a belief it is manifesting daily.

GRAPHIC DEVICES

Arresting and unique illustrations and patterns are used extensively in the Bhutanese, and Buddhist, artistic traditions. We honour this ancient art by making it super, updating it with a contemporary look and feel.

Ornaments

Hand-painted architectural decoration is one of the 13 crafts, or zorig chosum, that represent Bhutanese cultural identity. Traditional motifs have been reimagined with digital precision to create dynamic, new icons.

Auspicious Symbols

A series of auspicious symbols has been given a bold, graphic reworking in high-contrast hues, evoking Bhutan’s dynamism and transformation, rooted in its vibrant heritage.

Mythical Animals

Four auspicious beasts from Buddhist mythology, carrying powerful symbolism, have been digitally redrawn. Imbued with all their traditional meaning – but presented with newly sharp definition and vivid colour – they invoke stories past, present and future.

Contemporary Constellations

 “Contemporary constellations” draws on the traditional decorations of Bhutan, rearranging and reinterpreting them as a richly decorative pattern. The complete iteration seen here is primarily used on the inside of applications: hidden at first, but revealed when you take a closer look. We imagine it as an interpretation of the clear night sky, filled with mesmerising constellations.

 

Future Folk

Using an imagined telescope to gaze at our constellation, this extreme close-up creates an appealing abstraction that’s thoroughly modern. A progressive reimagining of folkloric motifs in vivid, optimistic hues, this evolution plays with the contrasts alluded to in our brand narrative.

CAMPAIGN

Heralding its reopening to international tourism, and a new era of transformation, Bhutan will reintroduce itself to the world in an international campaign. This campaign takes the form of a manifesto: a bold statement encapsulating its pride, progress and plans. It will lead conscious travellers from their preconceptions of the nation as mystical and remote to new awareness of its progressiveness and ambitions. It will also be a rallying cry for the Bhutanese as we lead the country through the process of transformation. Inspired by Bhutan’s colourful oral traditions, the campaign is worded to evoke the lyrical flow of lozey and darshey, giving the kingdom’s rich heritage contemporary expression.

WEBSITE

To communicate Bhutan’s renewed focus on high-value, low-impact tourism, MMBP & Associates has devised a website that inspires and informs – a resource aimed at both those with a planned trip to the country and those daydreaming about visiting one day. Fresh, insightful long reads and short articles, accompanied by original photography, appear regularly to enrich readers’ understanding of the kingdom – and these provide incentives to keep coming back to the site. The result is an international platform for local voices that offers first-hand experience of the nation’s rich storytelling tradition.

MMBP & Associates engaged UK-based firm ON as its technology partner in the development of the website. ON’s expertise brought to life a future-facing platform – with creative solutions and features such as an interactive 3D map – that reflect this moment of evolution for Bhutan.