A participatory branding case study: Rykantų Paštas
Colours, fonts and layouts give branding its form, and conversation gives identity its beginning. This is a story how meeting with a local community and imagining together shaped the brand identity of a physical space.
In May and June 2024, I worked with the community of Rykantai, a small rural village in Lithuania, to explore what their former post office represents now. By listening closely to what already lived in the place and its people, we translated shared stories, emotions and memory into a visual identity.
Across three in-person sessions, facilitated together with community activist Gabriele Janilionyte, local voices shaped the brand identity that now appears in Rykantų Paštas communication and website. The visual system was developed in collaboration with brand designer Malü Duque. The project was partially funded by the EU and the MARIO programme.
Starting from a physical place
The first session was about orientation. We gathered around large sheets of paper and began mapping the village together. Where does Rykantai begin and end? Which buildings matter? Which paths connect people? Who lived here before and what traces remain?
As stories surfaced, so did forgotten details. Legends about Napoleon near the village oak. Stories of gold hidden in the lake. Memories of forests that once surrounded the area. The old cobblestone road that still leads to the post office. The community recalled facts and began noticing their place in new ways.
Exploring the building through the senses
In the second part of the first workshop, local community members walked through the building itself. They paid attention to textures, light, shadow, proportions, atmosphere. What does it feel like to stand here? What mood lives in these rooms?
From this exploration, several themes emerged: the play of light and shadow, change and transformation, warmth and intimacy, a historic meeting place for news and ideas, hidden layers and quiet secrets. The brand visuals grew directly from these shared impressions.
When a building becomes a character
A week later, the second session invited imagination. What if Rykantų Paštas were a person? Who would it be? What has it experienced? What does it long for? Community members developed characters and explored brand archetypes. After discussion and voting, two archetypes resonated most strongly: the Sage and the Caregiver. Other figures appeared too, a time traveller, a seeker, a wise woman carrying light. These stories guided the development of the brand identity.
Brand identity as prototype
After a month, we returned to the community with two visual moodboards. This phase, called the identity prototype, invited the community to respond to the direction that was taking shape. Participants reviewed colours, shapes, patterns and stylistic elements. They voted, commented, discussed what felt aligned and what did not. Sticky notes carried honest reactions. This dialogue shaped the final brand direction.
From dialogue to design
After the community sessions, the process moved into a quieter phase. Together with the building’s owner, Jurgita, we refined the chosen direction, adjusted details and ensured the identity worked in practice. By the end of July, the Rykantų Paštas brandbook was complete. It visually summarised the themes and character that emerged through the co-creation process.
In autumn, the identity moved into the digital space. The website at www.rykantupastas.lt became the next layer of the project, translating visual language into structure and experience.
The Rykantų Paštas case shows how brand identity can grow through collective listening. Identity design becomes a way to understand a place, or a business, more deeply. When people participate in shaping identity, ownership grows naturally. The visual result fulfils its aesthetic purpose while carrying the memory and meaning shaped through co-creation with the community.
If you are considering your own identity
If you are thinking about creating or redefining your brand identity, whether for a community space, a cultural initiative, your own business or your personal brand, it may be worth asking: What is my/our story? Who should be part of uncovering it?
