BRAND ID SYSTEMS
Designing Trust, Not Just Tech
ClientDatamaranServicesBrand ID SystemsYear2014-presentLinkdatamaran.com
Datamaran®: A Brand Born out of Strategic Foresight
Summary
Datamaran’s brand identity, which I conceived in 2014 from brand name and logo invention to its presence on Nasdaq’s Times Square screens, is a living system built on thoughtful, strategic design. From the D‑shaped sail mark and signature turquoise palette to a rigorous brand book and evolving typography, the visual identity, including data visualisations that powered Fortune 500 strategies and annual reporting, has shaped global investor stages and enterprise‑scale storytelling while remaining instantly recognizable and true to its core idea: agile navigation through data oceans.
Origins
Having joined Datamaran’s wider founding team (Co-founders Marjella Lecourt-Alma, Jérôme Basdevant and JP Lecourt) in 2014, I designed their brand identity from the ground up: a visual system that has resonated globally for over a decade. Today, it powers Fortune 500 companies’ annual reports and shines on Nasdaq’s Times Square screens, proving the enduring power of thoughtful, foundational design.
Datamaran emerged as a visionary name blending “data” + “catamaran”, evoking agile navigation through vast data oceans. Launched in 2014, its core identity centers on a D-shaped wind sail within an infographic circle, rendered in a distinctive turquoise hue symbolizing trust, clarity, and forward momentum. This mark embodies the brand’s mission: harnessing data winds to chart sustainable business horizons.
Logo symbol registered at the US Patent and Trademark Office, allowing it to wear the ® officially.
Description: The mark consists of a broken circle, with a negative space, stylized version of a sail within the circle.
Global Propulsion Through Design
Since inception, the logo has propelled Datamaran across unforeseen territories, from European data lakes to global stages on both sides of the Atlantic. US Trademark patented and showcased at Guggenheim Museum conferences, Nasdaq Times Square screens, Bloomberg TV, London Stock Exchange, it now gleams on the Netherlands HQ facade. Securing Fortune 500 clients and investors like Morgan Stanley, this symbol proves brand architecture’s power to scale ambition worldwide.
Datamaran®’s logo projected at the Solomon R. Guggenheim conference hall in New York City, 2024.
Netherlands HQ, interior branding and on exterior public space display. Featured live on London Stock Exchange TV.
As featured on Bloomberg TV, and on Nasdaq's screen at Times Square NYC, 2025.
Visual Design: The Brand's Living Breath
Visual design is not decoration, it’s the brand’s breath, the vital force that animates strategy in every interaction. As Marty Neumeier (branding author, worked with Apple/Google) states, “A brand is not the logo or the product. It’s what people say about you when you’re not in the room.”
Datamaran’s D-shaped sail embodies this perfectly; people see agile navigation, data mastery, and boundless horizons. It whispers “trustworthy pioneer” at Nasdaq screens, Fortune 500 boardrooms, and Guggenheim stages, shaping perceptions before words are spoken. This instinctive resonance guides stakeholders through data’s infinite currents with clarity and conviction.
As such, timeless brand architecture supplies the oxygen for enterprise evolution.
Brandbook
Brand Book Matters
For Datamaran, we crafted a brand book that locks in the visual personality, like a playbook ensuring consistency everywhere it appears. We evolved the typography from bold Montserrat and clean Avenir for early marketing punch, to Titillium for data-packed interfaces (tech-sharp yet super-readable), now blending Space Grotesk + Avenir for standout campaigns. Titillium’s magic lies in its duality, sleek tech vibe that still feels human and easy on the eyes. Different roles demand different typefaces: scannable for complex dashboards, bold for grabbing attention.
On colours, the signature turquoise radiates trust and forward momentum through data’s vast oceans, while black anchors authority and white ensures pristine clarity, together forming a timeless palette that scales from boardrooms to Nasdaq screens.
This system ensures Datamaran’s identity has been growing stronger with every global impression.
Typography and colour palette samples.
Documents and publications including data visualisations resonating the brand ID throughout.
A 360° Brand That Breathes at Every Touchpoint
Datamaran’s brand resonates across print, socials, corporate documentation, and communications, folding seamlessly into product UX for a true 360° brand experience. From employees opening their laptops to clients publishing their annual reports with Datamaran’s data visualisation, every touchpoint actively breathes the brand—consistent, cohesive, and alive. Datamaran’s identity shapes that conversation at every interaction up until today.
See the related works down below for more.
