Cottonwood Management this week will unveil a new brand identity for a $900 million residential and retail development on Seaport Boulevard in Boston.
In a building boom of historic proportions, it’s harder than ever for developers to stand out from the crowd. It’s no longer sufficient to slap a number one or 100 in front of a street name when repositioning a tired office building or christening a new luxury high-rise.
When Boston-based marketing agency KHJ Brand Activation was hired by developer Synergy Investments to rebrand five Downtown Crossing office buildings, KHJ interviewed existing tenants to gauge their perception of the properties and neighborhood. The eventual choice from a list of 25 options –“The Hive,” with an orange honeycomb-inspired logo – reflected the freewheeling culture of the tech and creative economy tenants, said Mike Panagako, a KHJ vice president who runs the company’s real estate practice.
“(Synergy) were looking at what other real estate companies were doing,” Panagako said. “We said, ‘Well, here’s what this technology company is doing in your building.’ That’s what moved them to do something really out there.”
The logos were installed on exterior signs, online materials, artwork and decor throughout the 348,368-square-foot portfolio, which sold last month for $175 million.
Seaport Developer Set To Rebrand ‘M Block’
California developer Cottonwood Management, which recently began a $900 million development at 145 Seaport Boulevard, will unveil its chosen name at a ceremonial groundbreaking and Ming Tsai-catered reception on Tuesday. The 3.5-acre parcel was previously known as the “M block,” reflecting its past ownership in the 23-acre Seaport Square master-planned district.
Cottonwood last year hired David Williams, a partner at New York-based Davis Brody Bond, to develop a brand strategy for the parcel, which will include three towers of luxury condominiums and apartments and a 125,000-square-foot retail podium.
Williams declined to give specifics ahead of this week’s event, but said the concept reflects Cottonwood’s emphasis on “the human touch” while providing hotel-level residential services.
“You’re building a way of living in the Seaport that hasn’t existed with the level of amenities,” he said.
In Cambridge’s Alewife section, The Davis Cos. (TDC) hired KHJ to develop a marketing strategy for its Alewife Research Center (The ARC), a 223,000-square-foot speculative office and lab complex under construction at 35 Cambridgepark Drive.
Brian Fallon, president of TDC Development Group, said the developer wanted a name that would build upon the recent growth of the Alewife life science cluster and multifamily development.
“It’s all about market differentiation and a legitimate hook in terms of how you can get people’s attention in terms of what distinguishes this property,” Fallon said. “This is the last significant parcel in what we call the Alewife research area.”
Neighborhood connections also played into the tagline that KHJ developed for The Hive: “Where DTX Connects.” It wasn’t clear whether Downtown Crossing had a positive connotation, even with the neighborhood’s recent renaissance, Panagako said. But interviews with Hive tenants confirmed the lingering gritty street scene as a plus.
“Boston’s a little sanitized,” Panagako said. “These tenants say, ‘Downtown Crossing is cool. It’s funky. Sometimes I have a smoke out back and there’s graffiti. I like that stuff.’”
On Newbury Street, a portfolio of 15 retail buildings owned by Boston-based Urban Meritage was rebranded last month as Avantage Newbury. CO OP Brand Partners, with offices in Boston and New York, has named such recent projects as WS Development’s Legacy Place and is working with DivcoWest on a new name for its 45-acre development site in Cambridge previously known as NorthPoint.
“Urban retail properties can truly benefit from brands to stand for something different in a saturated and challenged market. To retail brokers and tenants, a strong brand is a sign of confidence and dedication to the property,” CO OP Founding Partner and CEO Jim Moran said in a statement.
And in the Financial District, a notation on a 19th-century map trumped a series of suggestions from architects Arrowstreet for a block of five former Fidelity Investments office buildings being redeveloped by Related Beal.
Stephen Faber, a Related Beal executive vice president, noticed the “Congress Square” designation for the surrounding neighborhood and embraced the historical connection, said Amy Korte, a principal for Arrowstreet.
Ultimately, though, renovations and a glass 6-story addition and roof deck pumped up the property’s appeal to the next generation of tenants, Korte said. Boston ad agency DigitasLBi agreed to lease more than 200,000 square feet at 40 Water St. last year.
“The building becomes the brand more than the name,” Korte said. “As an architect, I know I’m biased in that regard.”
