Baracchina Bianca

Built in Art Nouveau style towards the end of the 19th century, the Baracchina Bianca is a historic venue on Livorno’s beautiful seafront. Located just a few steps from the Terrazza Mascagni, in a small seafront square that includes the Church of San Jacopo and its ancient Crypt, it forms the geographical link between the Naval Academy and Bagni Pancaldi-Acquaviva—two other historic landmarks along Livorno’s long seaside promenade.

Born as the ticket office of the Ippodromo Caprilli, later converted into a tram stop and eventually into a newsstand selling newspapers and soft drinks, today it is an intimate yet refined bar-bistro that—from breakfast to dinner, with aperitivo in between—offers a complete and engaging experience, satisfying even the most discerning palates.

When the new ownership contacted us to refresh the image of Baracchina Bianca, we knew very well that generations of Livorno locals were—and still are—connected to that place through memories and experiences that needed to be respected and enhanced.

From the outset, our goal was to create an image that felt fresh and modern while also honoring a well-established brand heritage. Drawing on the aesthetic codes of early-1900s Livorno, we created a visual identity defined by simple, clear, direct stylistic references—easily recognizable to the local audience.

In addition to designing all possible corporate applications, the project also included the production of a series of photo and video contents, some of which were specifically conceived to keep public interest alive during the pandemic lockdowns.

Goals:

• Create Baracchina Bianca’s brand essence and brand identity, aligned with its past yet functional to its new positioning.
• Elevate the perceived quality of Baracchina Bianca both among the local audience and from a tourism perspective.
• Provide Baracchina Bianca with all the online and offline communication tools needed to engage with all of its key audiences.
• Promote Baracchina Bianca across all relevant channels.
• In the medium term, achieve brand awareness levels that are competitive compared to the past.

The rebranding of Baracchina Bianca was the final piece of a much broader project which—after a thorough and meticulous renovation—was meant to culminate in a grand opening to introduce the new venue to the city. Unfortunately, just when everything was almost ready, the pandemic upended our plans and those of the ownership, forcing us to buy time and wait for better days—without letting “our audience” lose interest.

This led to the idea of producing a series of video appeals, shared on social media and soon becoming viral, in which a well-known and much-loved Livorno comedian, Michele Crestacci, pretended for months that he had been trapped in the storage room of Baracchina Bianca. From there, he shared the news planned by the new management—until his “release” and a well-deserved dinner at the new restaurant.

Among the many contents that, once the pandemic ended, we could finally “set free,” it’s worth mentioning a series of Spotify playlists. Created specifically by a DJ who took inspiration from the colors of Baracchina Bianca’s color palette, they provided the musical backdrop for the opening phase.

The production of multimedia contents was, however, only a small part of the overall project, which included:

• Development of the brand strategy and content strategy.
• Brand design, and the design and production of corporate applications and the brand book.
• Design and production of all offline communication materials.
• Creation of all textual, photographic, and video contents.
• Website design, management, and updates.
• Editorial plan production; launch, management, and publishing across social channels.
• Design and management of social campaigns.