Anco&co, a build-to-rent (BTR) development, has just launched in the heart of Manchester with the help of me&dave that created an innovative language-led brand identity for the company.
As the development is located in a popular up-and-coming neighbourhood – Ancoats – the fly-poster campaign was inspired by protest placards. me&dave has also referenced Manchester’s world-famous music scene – the iconic bands, and gig posters by artists like Peter Saville of Factory Records fame.
me&dave were asked by real estate investors DTZ Investors to create a strategy that would demonstrate how Anco&co is moving the rental sector into a new era. To achieve this, the brand takes a cheeky dig at some of the problems that old-school tenants face, highlighting the benefits of this new ‘hotel style’ living.
The campaign has been deliberately designed to pique interest and get people talking. Hoardings surrounding the whole site have been covered in fly posters and a dedicated website has been set up so that people can register interest.
Some of the messages are explicit, such as ‘There’s a new landlord in town’, while some are intentionally abstract, such as ‘Sorry Billy, we’re over’. As well as being humorous and aesthetically striking, the campaign stands for a cause: “It’s saying, ‘We’ve had enough of being fobbed off with old mattresses, exploitative landlords and damp, substandard accommodation,” said Mark David, co-founder and creative director of me&dave.
Anco&co tenants, who will be able to move in next summer, will enjoy ready-to-live, fully furnished one- and two-bedroom apartments with en-suite bathrooms, private kitchens and living rooms. They’ll also have access to communal bars, cafés, co-work spaces, a common room, cinema, rooftop terrace and concierge service. Everything has been conceived to strike the perfect balance between the need for privacy and hanging out with neighbours.
“There aren’t many schemes like Anco&co out there, so when it came to branding and marketing there was no blueprint. We knew that me&dave was the right agency as it nails what’s right for a brand, even if that means breaking the ‘rules’. This project needed a creative team to think outside the box and disrupt the rental sector, and me&dave delivered,” said Christian Birrell of DTZ Investors.
