The new brand which contains the values and charms of Seoul
Background
The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) decided to develop a new brand that explicitly expresses Seoul’s identity and charms to enhance its urban competitiveness and become one of the top five global cities for living, visiting and investing.
Development
The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) unveiled the new brand design for its slogan “Seoul, My Soul” on Wed, Aug. 16 that contains the city’s identity and creativity. The brand design is the result of the city’s year-long public campaign to select the city’s new slogan, starting with an open call in August 2022 and followed by a series of preference survey into May and June 2023. Of the shortlisted candidates, the city decided on the brand design through a final brand design contest.
Around 850,000 domestic and international participants, including citizens, experts and firms, took part in the entire brand development process.
Meaning
“Seoul, My Soul” signifies Seoul as a city that is “centered around citizens, where collective citizenship creates a better Seoul.” It also reflects the dream to be remembered as an attractive and creative city where various emotions, such as “love,” “inspire,” and “fun.”
The brand aims to implicitly present Seoul’s attractive charms and extraordinary identity loved by both locals and the international community in an effort to take a new leap forward for Seoul as a city where citizens become happier and receive most love and attention from the world.
Pictogram
The brand design features colorful pictograms that represent love (heart), inspiration (exclamation point), and fun (smiley face), which are straightforward enough to overcome language barriers.
