Reimagining a City Centre

Background

Working in partnership with Leicester City Council, Arch Creative has played a central role in helping reimagine the future of the city centre – supporting the regeneration of public spaces, revitalisation of the high street, and the transition towards a more creative, sustainable, and liveable urban environment.

Strategic campaigns to mobilise Leicester

From behaviour-change campaigns and event-led footfall drivers to brand identities for forward-thinking strategies, we’ve delivered creative solutions that put people at the heart of the city. These projects work together to help define Leicester’s next chapter – one of resilience, vibrancy, and opportunity.

For each of the following campaigns we developed the brands, concept, animations, video and printed marketing materials.

Make a Date with Leicester

Encouraging people to rediscover their city after the pandemic, this playful campaign used bold visual identity, 3D animation, city-wide messaging and event tie-ins to drive footfall and remind people what they love about Leicester. The campaign was co-produced with FU Media and Cool As Leicester.

Outcome: Increased engagement in city events, restored confidence in city experiences.

Cover and inside spread of the Tourism Guide for the Leicester Make a Date campaign

We’ve Missed You

A welcome-back campaign with a warm, reassuring tone, focused on reopening the high street safely post-COVID. We used poetry to target a range of audiences – words which resonated on a deep and emotive level. The campaign spanned high-impact outdoor, social and in-store materials, guiding people back into shared spaces with clarity and optimism.

Outcome: Helped ease the transition out of lockdown while supporting local businesses.

The Heart of Leicester

Designed to support a long-term vision for a thriving, accessible and connected city centre, we created the brand and communications for this regeneration-led campaign. Through cohesive storytelling and future-focused messaging, the campaign built awareness and momentum behind infrastructure, public realm, and cultural investment.

Outcome: Unified public understanding of the city centre’s development roadmap.

Inside spread of the Heart of Leicester 10 year plan brochure

Leicester Leading

As part of Leicester’s Creative and Cultural Industries Strategy, this campaign aimed to position the city as a national leader in creativity and innovation. We developed the campaign strategy, visual identity and video content to celebrate creative industries, highlight opportunities, and promote inclusive economic growth.

Outcome: Supported a thriving ecosystem of creatives, while helping attract investment and talent.

Climate Ready Leicester

Empowering communities to take sustainable action, we developed a clear, engaging brand for Leicester’s Climate Ready campaign. Featuring an arrow motif and natural colour palette, the identity promotes optimism and agency – backed by practical guides and resources for real-world impact.

Outcome: Encouraged climate-conscious behaviour through accessible, inclusive design.

Connected Campaigns

Through these connected campaigns, Arch Creative has helped Leicester City Council inspire confidence, culture and climate action in the heart of the city. By combining place branding with purpose-driven storytelling, we’re proud to support a future for Leicester that’s sustainable, imaginative, and inclusive for all.

Uncover the Story

What we did

We were challenged to find a visual solution to selling Leicester and Leicestershire’s disparate tourism offer through the framework of local stories. It needed to be bold to stand out in the marketplace and yet authentic to an area that was not widely known for its tourism. It needed to work equally well with a small restaurant as a major multicultural city. Given also that there were issues around the perception of the quality of the tourism offer, the solution also needed to change hearts and minds.

Tourism through storytelling

To meet these challenges, we developed a bold visual framework rooted in the region’s local stories, creating a design system flexible enough to represent a wide variety of attractions. The approach combined striking imagery with playful, engaging graphic elements to capture attention while remaining authentic to the character of Leicester and Leicestershire. This solution not only elevated individual experiences but also shifted perceptions of the area as a whole, helping audiences see it as a vibrant, must-visit destination.