The main goal of this project is to introduce a new brand identity for the Mexican restaurant chain Popocatepetl. The owner of the chain is Debuut, which has 27 restaurants in the Netherlands. However, it doesn’t have experience in re-branding an existing chain. It has been successful in developing new restaurants throughout the years. This chain is located in seven cities in The Netherlands and faces financial decreases. The brand is very general and targets at a broad range of audience, which makes it hard to specify a distinct brand personality. The main research questions for this project are: How to establish a brand identity for Popocatepetl, a Mexican restaurant chain since 1983? And how to involve the company during this design process to give a better understanding of brand-driven innovation as strategy? During this project the brand is seen as a guideline throughout the entire design and strategy process. This approach is called brand-driven innovation (Roscam Abbing, 2010). This means that the new brand identity of Popocatepetl will help the company to get ideas that stay on brand regarding its interior, assortment, website, events etc. In this report the brand identity of “Popo” is established and applied in different design layers. The four design phases & results In order to solve this problem different studies are conducted. The project uses the four design phases of the double-diamond model (British Design Council, 2005). The discover phase is the internal and external analysis of the market. The define phase defines the design objectives, the develop phase shows the final brand identity, and the deliver phase includes an implementation plan and further recommendations. Internal & external analysis The first phase gave information about the current situation: what the visitors think and what the market of restaurants shows. The main findings were that: Mexican food is currently perceived as generally known food, which doesn’t feel like a special dining experience. Yet the place itself feels comfortable for many visitors. The external analysis shows that Popocatepetl doesn’t meet certain requirements as its competitors does. These competitors have a concept that’s kept simple, with a concise assortment and which targets a specific need of the consumer. Also focus on the food assortment is important. It should be relevant for customers; is it fast, does it have a high quality standard, is it affordable, or is it a combination of all? This point brings us to the last requirement: value for money. This one isn’t price related but experience related. A high experience can still be given for a low price range as long as the concept is kept simple. Brand vision of company It is important to note that the corporate strategy of Debuut has a high influence on the final brand identity. Popocatepetl currently doesn’t fit into the current product portfolio of Debuut, because it only serves one kind of experience: the Mexican experience. Debuut wants less of this theme, because it doesn’t feel a strong connection to provide the actual culture of Mexico. It thus wants to use Mexico as an inspirational source rather than a strong element to show in its aesthetics. The final brand identity “Popo” The final brand identity will be used for the abbreviated name: Popo. The modern areas of Mexico City, such as Roma Norte, are the inspirations for Pop. These areas are enclaves of cultural expressionism: it supports its community in local agriculture, small business, and artists. This mindset is used for the brand identity Popo that promises the following: “Popo wants me to be an inspired and excited guest. It claims to be caring, daring, and creative. It dares to express its ideas and inspires me to express my ideas. The soft and edgy side in Mexican food and nature are perfect sources to change my current status quo. This place is an escape from my daily rush. Popo becomes part of my social life, where ideas are shared and moments are remembered. “ Five design guidelines are made to follow the brand promise of Popo. The guidelines are supported with six characteristics that help to create concrete ideas for Popo. It also helps the company to have a structured way of establishing (new) brands for their future restaurants. Implementation plan & business case It’s recommended to implement the final concept Popo in several phases. The first year (2016) can be used as pilot phase where new elements, such as the food, work-wear, and small interior changes can be implemented in the existing locations. Feedback obtained during this stage will be used to optimize the final concept Popo, which will be implemented entirely in the existing location in The Hague (Nov, 2016). This stage also allows the company to align with its stakeholders e.g. franchise holders. The other seven locations are remodeled after the first opening of Popo The Hague. For future implementation the company must think of yearly events and even another version of Popo that is suitable for railway stations, shopping centers, and tourists. When investing 3 million for the seven locations it’s reasonable to expect that the new turnover equals the annual turnover achieved in 2008: Popocatepetl’s best year. The business case is calculated with the current average spending of 26,95 per person. When the new Popo wants to achieve its annual turnover it must attract an additional amount of 157 visitors per day for all seven locations. The figure below shows the business case. Recommendations The recommendation is to focus on the food, the story of the food, and its interior. These elements are quite a change for people. Therefore it is important to note that a good introduction of these elements is necessary. Other features can be used in the future, but again, this needs to be done with a good introduction and small steps to get everyone on the same line to understand the new Popo.