Defining the Destination
For years, Finger Lakes Countrysides and the Yates County Chamber of Commerce were represented by the exact same logo — two organizations, one identity, doing two very different jobs. Untangling that wasn’t just a design fix; it was a chance to give an entire county’s tourism brand room to grow on its own. That’s where we came in.
Without a mark to call its own, our challenge was to give Yates County’s tourism brand a way to speak directly to visitors while the Chamber’s identity kept speaking to its member businesses.
As we explored options, we identified additional opportunities to modernize the identity and strengthen its presence across the wine trail, farm markets, and small-town downtowns that define the county. The team was open to these recommendations, but wanted the new brand to stay unmistakably part of the Finger Lakes — the region visitors already know, search for, and plan trips around.
Rooted in Place
The final design strikes that balance. The new icon is built to invite interpretation, much like the region itself reveals something new with every visit — read at first glance as Yates County’s rolling hillsides and layered farmland, or as the gentle movement of tributaries and lakeshore waves converging across the three Finger Lakes that border the county, or as wine glasses resting on their sides, a subtle nod to the wineries and tasting experiences the region is known for. That same layered thinking carries into the palette: rich, vibrant greens for the vineyard rows, farmland, and forests, grounded by light earth neutrals drawn from limestone soils, weathered barns, and sunlit trails, paired with a typography system built on Gelica Bold, Gelica Light, and Avenir Medium. The rollout is across FingerLakesCountrysides.com and its Facebook and Instagram channels, and even extended into the Keuka Lake Wine Trail and downtown Penn Yan’s own visitor materials as well.
