The famous
blank canvas
Relaunch for motorcycle heritage brand Horex – from logo to press event
Our Services:
- Redesign of Corporate Identity: Web design, Print guidelines, visual language und team apparel
- High-profile viral media campaign „The New Bike “
- Press conferences, press rides and testing
- Media management: acting role as external press office for the brand
- Trade fair appearances at the Intermot: conception, booth set-up and on-site support
- B2C communication: Production of all printed media and promotional materials
- B2B communication: development of the POS concept, organization of dealer events and info material
It was the kind of job you don’t get every day: „Join us in resurrecting the Horex motorcycle brand.” Such was the task, slightly condensed, that let us start with the famous blank canvas.
The masterminds behind the project not only relaunched the legendary German brand in the early 2010s, but also came up with the “VR6” six-cylinder engine: a completely new engine concept in the segment of two-wheeled vehicles. The number of necessary PR tasks soon mirrored that of the new engine’s RPM. They included photo and video support, trade show and event organization as well as kitting out showrooms and dealerships.
The Project
The new Horex: a brand relaunch custom-fitted by DIE WORTWERKSTATT
We began the high-profile relaunch from scratch – literally. Since the Horex brand had lain dormant for around five decades, we worked closely with our client to draw up a new company logo and a complete corporate design – from printed media to the website, from the visual language to dealership branding. In the meantime, we also developed the communication concept for brand and vehicle – at the start strictly confidential and top secret, of course. Obviously, we also conceived of and organized every Horex event. Before the launch event in May 2010, we prepped the international trade media with e-mail newsletters and frequent online teasers in the much noted “The New Bike” campaign.
„The New Bike“ comes to life
The very positive response to the new VR6 motorcycle paved the way for the first end customer presentation we handled at the premier trade fair Intermot, held in the fall of that year. Parallel to our ongoing work as the brand’s external press office, DIE WORTWERKSTATT also began to provide dealership support. Here our tasks ranged from designing the Horex retail areas at the point of sale (and setting them up in line with the corporate design) to personally attending to the first prospective owners.
Step by step to the production start of the Horex VR6
Starting a project like this takes a lot of endurance. While Horex was developing its new motorcycle and inching towards series production, the task for DIE WORTWERKSTATT was as follows: provide bespoke information for all target groups and tell the story of the new-old brand and its nascent, exclusive product. No sooner said than done: Until the start of production, we provided stakeholders, media and the Horex fan community with words, films, images, and a wide variety of info material on all channels to maintain a high level of interest in the VR6 bikes. Our jobs included arranging test rides for the press, producing behind-the-scenes coverage and film projects as well as organizing exclusive events for dealers and the very first buyers of the new bike.
