Start Bar combines past and present to create something entirely new in St. Louis. Atomicdust followed that theme to deliver a brand, website and interior that elevate the arcade bar concept.
The team behind Start Bar hired Atomicdust to launch a brand new arcade bar in downtown St. Louis. We started with branding, identity and website work, then ventured into interior design to bring the brand to life. Everywhere you look,’90s arcade culture and rap serve as Start Bar’s building blocks.
To set the tone for Start Bar’s interior, we framed photos and created 10-foot art murals that celebrate early gaming culture. A mix of photos and 8-bit designs highlight The Legend of Zelda, the Konami Code and icons from the beginning of the video game era.
When it came time to create tokens, we drew inspiration from the timeless Wu-Tang Clan classic “C.R.E.A.M.” After a tweak to the lyrics, thousands of coins were minted with the line, “Coins Rule Everything Around Me.”
With a large, open brick building with 25-foot ceilings, we didn’t want to give away all of Start Bar’s secrets in the first few feet. So we designed a secret room and hid it behind an out-of-order arcade game. Inside, photos of video game villains and a mounted Nintendo Super Scope create a mini video game hunting lodge.
While working on the branding and interior for Start Bar, we created social accounts to share our in-progress designs and build excitement. Over the course of 12 weeks, we helped manage Start Bar’s social media presence, earning more than 4,000 Instagram followers and nearly 9,000 likes on Facebook.
The brand identity and environmental design for Start Bar has been honored locally at the AIGA St. Louis Design Show and American Advertising Awards, and recognized nationally by the Graphic Design USA American Package Design Awards.
