Case Study - Tank Stream Ventures
A venture fund for solving global problems with tech.
Introduction
Tank Stream Ventures is a $20m technology VC firm that invests in strong teams building scalable and defensible businesses leveraged by technology. They support founders with an ambitious vision to disrupt industries and improve people’s lives. As part of their new investment philosophy, we teamed up with them to develop a fresh new brand.
Rui, partner at Tank Stream Ventures reached out to us with the idea of a VC firm that invests in core human needs: how we work, move, live and transact. At the time, the brand hadn’t changed in 5 years and there was no consistency across their styleguide. A VC firm trying to save the world with awesome branding… what’s not to love?
Research
Tank Stream Ventures' new thematic outlook focuses on investing in core, global issues in humanity that can be fixed or augmented with technology. From a brand perspective, the goal was to frame the firm as founder-centric for startups that are trying to solve big problems... critical issues that people really identify with. Startups that realise technology is a means to a solution. Painkillers, not vitamins.
To get there, TSV would need a new brand that reflected that they are authentic and connected to the startup community, but also a trustworthy venture firm. That means confidence on both sides of the market: entrepreneurs and limited partners. TSV needs to reflect that they're more like founders than corporate investors. Approachable, but to LPs... still the real deal. Maybe they'll even get excited becoming an active part in changing the world!
Brand Identity
The sidewheel paddlesteamer is an iconic ship design, powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. We used this symbol for the new logo as it merges one of the four pillars of TSV (“how we move”) with the recurring motif of water and streams. The use of a paddle wheel was first conceived in the western world by Vitruvius, who’s writings inspired Leonardo Da Vinci’s “Vitruvian Man”.
The logomark is designed to be simple, strong and memorable, aimed at allowing TSV to stand out in a busy ecosystem of venture firms and investors. The mark’s use of curves, colours and line style give it an illustrative feel — creating a beautiful and remarkably non-traditional symbol.
TSV's palette is a delicate balance of professional and vibrant. The primary “Tank Stream Blue” is used when referring to the brand as a whole. Rich Black and Slate Grey are primarily reserved for typography, while Royal Blue and Bubbles are primarily used for background images, shades or highlights.
We selected two fonts (Roboto and Source Sans Pro) that are provided by Google Fonts which make them a great, accessible choice for working with Google’s work tools like Docs and Slides.
Website
The new TSV website is a single page aimed at cut-through communication to founders trying to solve critical problems that people identify with, connecting with these founders on a personal level and letting them know that TSV is here to back them.
