Sharjah unveils new brand identity

Dubai: Sharjah is sharpening focus on its tourism industry, by unveiling a new branding - Brand Sharjah.

The emirate last year received 1.5 million visitors, a significant increase from 600,000 visitors in 2000.

The hotel occupancy rate is up to 85 per cent in all the emirate's hotels and hotel apartments. Further, the total number of hotels in Sharjah has increased to 96, substantially more than the 20 hotels in 2000.

The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) unveiled the emirate's new identity brand, Brand Sharjah, at the Sharjah Expo Centre on Sunday at a ceremony attended by Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah.

SCTDA chairman Shaikh Sultan Bin Ahmad Bin Sultan Al Qasimi, said, "Since the establishment of the SCTDA, we have systematically driven forward our robust promotional strategy, with special focus on highlighting the attractions and uniqueness of the emirate, presenting it as a distinguished tourist destination.

The announcement of the new brand of Sharjah is the result of two years of hard work with the aim of presenting Sharjah's integrated identity and personality to the public to highlight the emirate's attractions for tourists and investors alike.

Symbols

This brand is not simply a slogan, but an all-inclusive identity whose inherent character provides a clear direction and serves as a yardstick by which we can continue to promote the emirate on an international stage."

The visuals for the new Brand Sharjah consist of a combination of symbols, colours and typography, representing several aspects of the emirate's identity, and will become the standard branding used in all future communications.

Elements

The emirate's new brandmark comprises three elements, namely the Sharjah symbol, the Arabic word mark for Sharjah and the Latin word for Sharjah.

These are rendered in a combination of light and deep blue, gold, purple and orange, with each of the colours symbolising a particular facet of the emirate's identity: light blue for wellbeing and the East Coast, deep blue for education, gold for business and industry, purple for art, heritage and culture and orange for tourism and retail.