branding and identity
Visual identity for the Serbian hub of a major IT company
We created a visual identity for the Serbian hub of a major IT company that helped employees feel connected to the local context and to their team.
NDA. We can’t disclose the client, so in this case study we call it TecHub. We use the same name in the logo, keeping the same graphic solutions as in the original.
The challenge
We were approached by the Serbian hub of a major IT company in Belgrade. It employs about 1,700 people, most of them Russians who relocated to Serbia. The task was to create a visual identity for these employees. On the one hand, the team wanted to emphasize the connection with Serbia, Belgrade and the local culture. On the other, it wanted to help employees who had moved from Russia feel at home in a new country.
Almost no one in Belgrade knows this company. Expats from Russia had lost that “wow, you work at such a cool place” feeling. We needed to bring back a sense of belonging to something big and meaningful.
Almost no one in Belgrade knows this company. Expats from Russia had lost that “wow, you work at such a cool place” feeling. We needed to bring back a sense of belonging to something big and meaningful.
What we did
We created a visual identity that fully stands apart from the company’s global corporate image. The core idea is graffiti. For expats from Russia, it’s one of the most vivid associations with Belgrade. Graffiti connects the city’s present with its history. Through it, we showed how the brand becomes part of the local context instead of existing separately from it.
We made the logo in two versions. The primary one is condensed and compact, and it reads well at any size. The accent version is done in graffiti style: it adds character and supports the overall look. The two versions can be used on their own or together.
The palette is built from color pairs: bright shades are matched with muted ones. This reflects the duality of the company’s Serbian context — the hub’s high-tech nature intertwined with the country’s deep ties to agricultural traditions. At first the palette had four color pairs, but later we expanded it to make the identity more flexible.
How we found the solution
The project started with a pitch. We offered several concepts so that we could choose the right direction together with the team. Then we worked in iterations, refining and polishing. But let’s take it step by step.
Stage 1: the pitch
When the request came in, we held a briefing with the client: the team told us about their pain points and shared research on who their employees are. We agreed to present three concepts.
What made this project special for us is that part of our team, including the art director, lives in Belgrade and truly loves the city. So when we briefed the designer, who had only visited Belgrade as a guest, we shared our personal observations. We told her that in the city center imperial heritage stands side by side with modern buildings, and many walls are covered in graffiti.
What made this project special for us is that part of our team, including the art director, lives in Belgrade and truly loves the city. So when we briefed the designer, who had only visited Belgrade as a guest, we shared our personal observations. We told her that in the city center imperial heritage stands side by side with modern buildings, and many walls are covered in graffiti.
The designer came up with seven directions. We picked a few of them and put together three concepts for the client:
- Traditional Serbian patterns stylized as pixels.
- Graffiti.
- Brutalism and geometry.
The client liked two options: pixel patterns and graffiti. The team leaned toward the second one but had doubts. It seemed not unique enough, and the hub already had merch in a similar style. We suggested this could actually be an advantage: employees were already familiar with the idea, so it would be easier for them to embrace an identity built on it. The team took some time to think and eventually chose graffiti.
We developed the concept toward greater realism: we chose a brush for the graffiti illustrations and a color palette, and along the way came the idea of stencil shapes. After several iterations we approved the final version and moved on to the main work.
We developed the concept toward greater realism: we chose a brush for the graffiti illustrations and a color palette, and along the way came the idea of stencil shapes. After several iterations we approved the final version and moved on to the main work.
Fun fact: as soon as the palette was approved, the project’s art director started noticing graffiti in exactly these shades all over Belgrade.
Stage 2: guidebook and touchpoints
We worked on the guidebook and the touchpoints in parallel. This way we could immediately see how the identity works. When we made the client’s edits, we understood which applications worked and which didn’t. That helped us create realistic rules that really make working with the identity easier.
Guidebook
First, we described the basics of the identity in the guidebook: logo, typeface, colors. We developed graffiti as a system and drew alphabets based on it — Serbian Cyrillic and Latin. We added numbers, symbols and abstract strokes.
Guidebook
First, we described the basics of the identity in the guidebook: logo, typeface, colors. We developed graffiti as a system and drew alphabets based on it — Serbian Cyrillic and Latin. We added numbers, symbols and abstract strokes.
Touchpoints
Beyond the identity itself, we designed Telegram posts and presentation templates. We also described usage rules so that the team could create designs on its own in the future.
Beyond the identity itself, we designed Telegram posts and presentation templates. We also described usage rules so that the team could create designs on its own in the future.
Separately, we worked on one of the company’s internal projects: a Serbian language conversation club. We created a logo and illustrations for its Telegram posts in the new identity. The club has a very cozy, warm character, and the team wanted to keep it. We managed to do that with monochrome color combinations and calm typography — even though it’s still based on graffiti, which usually gives off a bolder vibe.
Bonus: hackathon badge design
Alongside the main project, we designed a badge for hackathon participants in the form of a sliding 15-puzzle.
We decided against a single image split into puzzle tiles, which only looks right when assembled one way. Instead, we made a set of pattern fragments inspired by the traditional Serbian kilim rug, ćilim. Each tile looks harmonious on its own, so they can be arranged in any order — which gives a huge number of unique combinations.
We decided against a single image split into puzzle tiles, which only looks right when assembled one way. Instead, we made a set of pattern fragments inspired by the traditional Serbian kilim rug, ćilim. Each tile looks harmonious on its own, so they can be arranged in any order — which gives a huge number of unique combinations.
Results
We built a visual identity from scratch and created a detailed guidebook based on it, so that any in-house designer can understand how the new identity works, what can and can’t be done with it. All the touchpoints went into use right away: Telegram posts are already being published, the presentation templates are in use, and the badges have been sent to production.
The dream team behind the project
- Alisa LadyginaArt director and designer
- Anna BalakhontsevaDesigner
- Sasha KurilenkoDesigner
- Yasmin MuhieddinDesigner
- Ivan LobanovIllustrator
- Irina ZakharovaProject manager and editor
- Evgeny BakinProject manager
- Alexander VokuevWrote this case study
© 2026 Ponyatno
Alisa Ladygina PR Beograd
Serbia, Belgrade, Savski Venac, Jug-Bogdanova 23/7, 11102
Alisa Ladygina PR Beograd
Serbia, Belgrade, Savski Venac, Jug-Bogdanova 23/7, 11102
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