A partnership for science

Business

The merger of De Gruyter and Brill marks the beginning of a new chapter in the long history of two scientific publishers. Stan Hema developed the brand strategy and visual identity of the new De Gruyter Brill brand.

Walter de Gruyter GmbH, founded in Berlin in 1749, and Koninklijke Brill BV, founded in 1683 in Leiden, in the Netherlands, both family-owned companies, are among the largest specialist publishers in the world. Following the merger, the joint portfolio comprises more than 30 scientific departments, ranging from historical first publications (Immanuel Kant, Friedrich Nietzsche) to monographs and anthologies, as well as international reference works and journals.

That makes De Gruyter Brill a strong new player in the academic publishing market. Stan Hema developed the brand strategy and visual appearance to fit that role. We have given the new publishing brand a luminous, self-confident appearance that clearly sets it apart from the competition. A vibrant colour scheme reflects both the broad portfolio and the vision of the publisher: a bright future. It ranges from the clear brand colours of purple and dark blue to accents in signal colours and neutral paper tones.

The logo is a stylised monogram of three quotation marks: dgb (= De Gruyter Brill). The quotation marks directly express the purpose of De Gruyter Brill as a business and give the image mark a high level of recognition value. At the same time, they form the basis for a flexible design system. They can appear individually, in pairs or as patterns, convey content or serve as illustrations. The tonality can be positioned anywhere from strong and high-contrast to subtle and monochrome.