No Logo. No Signage. 55 Years Anyway.
No Logo. No Signage. 55 Years Anyway.
Surabhi Bakery, running since 1969 is an old, no-frills neighbourhood bakery tucked into the dense lanes of Jodhpur's old city. It's not a polished or modern setup; it's a single-room working bakery where the oven, the flour, the heat, and the workers all share the same space as the customers.
market research
brand strategy
field observation
Visual direction
Logotype
brand design
Role
Brand Designer (Team Lead)
Type
Project
Timeline
3 weeks
Year
2025
industry
Food and Beverages
Bakery needed an identity that could carry 55 years of trust into an old city that was starting to look different around it.
Bakery needed an identity that could carry 55 years of trust into an old city that was starting to look different around it.
Overview
Overview
Surabhi Bakery is an old, no-frills neighborhood bakery hidden inside the dense lanes of Jodhpur’s old city. It’s not a polished or modern shop — it’s a functioning workspace where the oven, the flour, the heat, and the workers all occupy the same room as the customers.
Surabhi Bakery is an old, no-frills neighborhood bakery hidden inside the dense lanes of Jodhpur’s old city. It’s not a polished or modern shop — it’s a functioning workspace where the oven, the flour, the heat, and the workers all occupy the same room as the customers.
Despite the lack of modern setup, Surabhi Bakery has survived since 1969 because it delivers what its community wants: fresh, affordable, filling bakery items made daily by hand.
Nothing about the business was ever designed to be looked at — it was designed to be used, every day, by people who already knew where to find it.
Despite the lack of modern setup, Surabhi Bakery has survived since 1969 because it delivers what its community wants: fresh, affordable, filling bakery items made daily by hand.
Nothing about the business was ever designed to be looked at — it was designed to be used, every day, by people who already knew where to find it.
Founded
1969
Location
Near MS Clinic, Nai Sarak, Gulzarpura, Sri Ganganagar, Jodhpur — inside the old city, surrounded by residential and labour-dense lanes
Ownership
Operated daily by Gani Ustad, decades of hands-on baking experience, limited exposure to modern bakery management
Workspace
One room doubling as production and sales floor — no counter, no displays, no signage, oven running in the same space customers stand in
The Approach
The Approach
We treated the bakery itself as the brief. Nothing borrowed from outside bakery trends — the mark, the type, the visual system, all built from what was already sitting in the room: the oven, the dough, the daily batch.
We treated the bakery itself as the brief. Nothing borrowed from outside bakery trends — the mark, the type, the visual system, all built from what was already sitting in the room: the oven, the dough, the daily batch.
Brand Strategy
Brand Strategy
The old-city bakery market is crowded and undifferentiated; most competitors compete on price alone, with no real identity behind them. Surabhi's advantage was never going to be range or polish. It was time: 55 unbroken years in the same lane.
We started the signup with no priors — one field per page, the way any new user would. We noticed, to complete onboarding took over five minutes, which isn’t unreasonable on its own for an app asking you to build a real profile — but a phone number request dropped mid-flow, and personality questions (“would you rather be normal or weird?”) that ignored the intent we’d just selected, made that time feel spent on the wrong things rather than simply spent.
The old-city bakery market is crowded and undifferentiated; most competitors compete on price alone, with no real identity behind them. Surabhi's advantage was never going to be range or polish. It was time: 55 unbroken years in the same lane.
We defined Surabhi's brand as grounded, honest, and handmade; a bakery that earns trust by staying exactly what it already is.
We defined Surabhi's brand as grounded, honest, and handmade; a bakery that earns trust by staying exactly what it already is.
Brand Story
Brand Story
Its purpose is to keep Jodhpur's old-city baking tradition alive. Fresh, handmade, and affordable, every single day, for the community that depends on it.
We started the signup with no priors — one field per page, the way any new user would. We noticed, to complete onboarding took over five minutes, which isn’t unreasonable on its own for an app asking you to build a real profile — but a phone number request dropped mid-flow, and personality questions (“would you rather be normal or weird?”) that ignored the intent we’d just selected, made that time feel spent on the wrong things rather than simply spent.
Its purpose is to keep Jodhpur's old-city baking tradition alive. Fresh, handmade, and affordable, every single day, for the community that depends on it.
A heritage bakery that keeps everyday baking real, fresh, and handmade since 1969.
A heritage bakery that keeps everyday baking real, fresh, and handmade since 1969.
Logo
Logo
The mark reads as a heart first; care and sincerity in every batch. Inside it, a lighter form forms a stylised "B," and the same silhouette doubles as a basket holding two buns. Left partially filled, it's a quiet nod to the audience Surabhi serves, and the honest, affordable food that helps fill that gap.
We started the signup with no priors — one field per page, the way any new user would. We noticed, to complete onboarding took over five minutes, which isn’t unreasonable on its own for an app asking you to build a real profile — but a phone number request dropped mid-flow, and personality questions (“would you rather be normal or weird?”) that ignored the intent we’d just selected, made that time feel spent on the wrong things rather than simply spent.
The mark reads as a heart first; care and sincerity in every batch. Inside it, a lighter form forms a stylised "B," and the same silhouette doubles as a basket holding two buns. Left partially filled, it's a quiet nod to the audience Surabhi serves, and the honest, affordable food that helps fill that gap.
Logomark
Logomark
Logotype
Logotype
Full Logo
Full Logo
Verbal Identity
Verbal Identity
The voice is grounded, direct, and warm; no fancy language, honest to its working-class roots. It speaks the way Gani Ustad would, not the way a modern café brand would.
We started the signup with no priors — one field per page, the way any new user would. We noticed, to complete onboarding took over five minutes, which isn’t unreasonable on its own for an app asking you to build a real profile — but a phone number request dropped mid-flow, and personality questions (“would you rather be normal or weird?”) that ignored the intent we’d just selected, made that time feel spent on the wrong things rather than simply spent.
The voice is grounded, direct, and warm; no fancy language, honest to its working-class roots. It speaks the way Gani Ustad would, not the way a modern café brand would.
Visual Identity
Visual Identity
Trust and tradition paired with warmth and sincerity, and a direct nod to Jodhpur's own identity as the Blue City.
We started the signup with no priors — one field per page, the way any new user would. We noticed, to complete onboarding took over five minutes, which isn’t unreasonable on its own for an app asking you to build a real profile — but a phone number request dropped mid-flow, and personality questions (“would you rather be normal or weird?”) that ignored the intent we’d just selected, made that time feel spent on the wrong things rather than simply spent.
Trust and tradition paired with warmth and sincerity, and a direct nod to Jodhpur's own identity as the Blue City.
The palette, alongside stainless steel trays and everyday market textures, keeps every application anchored to the bakery's real surroundings.
The palette, alongside stainless steel trays and everyday market textures, keeps every application anchored to the bakery's real surroundings.
MD Nichrome carries the logo and headlines — modern and assertive, so the brand doesn't read as purely nostalgic. TT Norms Pro handles body copy, built for clarity. Pragati (प्रगति) covers Hindi communication, since most of Surabhi's customers read Devanagari more comfortably than English.
MD Nichrome carries the logo and headlines — modern and assertive, so the brand doesn't read as purely nostalgic. TT Norms Pro handles body copy, built for clarity. Pragati (प्रगति) covers Hindi communication, since most of Surabhi's customers read Devanagari more comfortably than English.
Pattern System
Pattern System
From Oven to Satisfaction
Illustration system is built as a visual narrative, a journey that reflects the everyday process of baking, serving, and satisfaction.
Drawn in a single-line style
The system captures small, familiar moments — making dough, working by hand, baking, tasting, and emotional connection.
Packaging System
Packaging System
Surabhi Bakery’s packaging system is designed to be simple, functional, and cost‑efficient while communicating freshness, authenticity, and the handmade nature of the bakery. The goal is to create packaging that feels local, honest, and easy to understand, with a consistent visual language across all products.
Surabhi Bakery’s packaging system is designed to be simple, functional, and cost‑efficient while communicating freshness, authenticity, and the handmade nature of the bakery. The goal is to create packaging that feels local, honest, and easy to understand, with a consistent visual language across all products.
Other Brand Assets
Other Brand Assets
Social Media Guidelines
Social Media Guidelines
Surabhi Bakery’s social media presence feels warm, local, and honest - reflecting the brand’s heritage and everyday connection with the community. The goal is not to appear like a modern café brand, but a trusted neighborhood bakery with a refreshed visual identity.
Content must feel simple, real, and consistent across all platforms.
Surabhi Bakery’s social media presence feels warm, local, and honest - reflecting the brand’s heritage and everyday connection with the community. The goal is not to appear like a modern café brand, but a trusted neighborhood bakery with a refreshed visual identity.
Content must feel simple, real, and consistent across all platforms.
The social feed should revolve around three principles:
The social feed should revolve around three principles:
Craft & Process
Craft & Process
Show what makes us unique
Handmade dough
Oven shots
Fresh batches coming out
Tools and trays
Daily Freshness
Daily Freshness
Communicate everyday activity
“Fresh today” updates
Early morning bakes
Today’s batches of biscuits/khari/rusk
Community & Storytelling
Community & Storytelling
Highlight real people and heritage
Staff who’ve worked for years
Stories from 1969 onwards
Local culture and surroundings
"हमारी बेकरी के लिए जो नई पहचान बनाई गई है, उसे देखकर दिल खुश हो गया। हमने कभी नहीं सोचा था कि हमारी छोटी सी बेकरी की कहानी को इतने अपनेपन और ईमानदारी से पेश किया जा सकता है।"
"हमारी बेकरी के लिए जो नई पहचान बनाई गई है, उसे देखकर दिल खुश हो गया। हमने कभी नहीं सोचा था कि हमारी छोटी सी बेकरी की कहानी को इतने अपनेपन और ईमानदारी से पेश किया जा सकता है।"
गनी उस्ताद
Reflection
Reflection
We initially thought the problem was that it looked unfinished next to its competitors and that the fix was to borrow some of what modern bakeries already had: cleaner counters, a more "complete" identity.
This started as a five-minute curiosity — download the app, see what “match %” actually meant — and turned into the longest research process either of us had run. Looking back, three things changed how we’d approach the next one.
We initially thought the problem was that it looked unfinished next to its competitors and that the fix was to borrow some of what modern bakeries already had: cleaner counters, a more "complete" identity.
We discovered that didn't hold once we were actually inside the workshop. Gani Ustad isn't using dalda because he hasn't gotten around to changing it - it's cheaper, and it's the exact flakiness his regulars already expect. The bakery we walked in assuming was under-designed turned out to be a set of decisions that were already working. What it lacked wasn't polish. It was a way to say any of that out loud.
We discovered that didn't hold once we were actually inside the workshop. Gani Ustad isn't using dalda because he hasn't gotten around to changing it - it's cheaper, and it's the exact flakiness his regulars already expect. The bakery we walked in assuming was under-designed turned out to be a set of decisions that were already working. What it lacked wasn't polish. It was a way to say any of that out loud.
This changed how we think about modernizing a legacy brand: it's to find the one thing they can't copy - 55 unbroken years, and build the system around making that visible.
This changed how we think about modernizing a legacy brand: it's to find the one thing they can't copy - 55 unbroken years, and build the system around making that visible.
fin
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