BBC Belgium
Following the successful launch of BBC NL, BBC Studios sought to introduce a dedicated BBC brand for Flemish audiences in Belgium.
BRANDING / MOTION / OOH / SOCIAL
Awards
Gold: Best Streaming Promotion – New York Festivals
Gold: Marketing Presentation – GEMA Europe
Silver: Brand + Brand Strategy & Planning – Dutch Interactive Awards
Silver: Brand Spot – GEMA Europe
Silver: Total Brand Design Package – GEMA Europe
Bronze: Best Multi Platform Promotion – New York Festivals
More about the project
The BBC NL toolkit provided a strong visual and motion framework, but simply replicating it in Belgium risked creating a brand that felt imported rather than locally relevant.
The opportunity was to build on the existing system while finding a visual language that reflected Flemish culture, taste, and identity.
Working as Senior Designer and Design Lead, I led the cultural research and creative development that informed the Belgian adaptation of the brand.
Rather than approaching the project as a straightforward rollout, I began by conducting in-depth research into Flemish culture, exploring historic and contemporary influences across art, architecture, fashion, cuisine, landscape, and graphic design.
The objective was to identify familiar visual characteristics that could inform the brand's expression and create a stronger connection with local audiences. I consolidated this research into a strategic presentation for affiliate and marketing teams, translating cultural observations into a curated Colour Palette.
The research and pitch revealed recurring themes across Flemish visual culture: boldness, warmth, joyfulness, harmonious contrast. Drawing inspiration from Flemish Masters, Belgian graphic design, regional architecture, natural landscapes, and everyday cultural references, I developed a curated colour system designed specifically for the Flemish market. The resulting palette allowed the BBC Belgium identity to feel locally relevant and friendly.
Evolving the system
Building on the foundations established for BBC NL, I adapted the visual and motion toolkits to incorporate the new colour strategy across every touchpoint, this included:
• On-air branding and promotions
• Social media assets
• DOOH campaign formats
• Marketing toolkits
• Partnership activations
By evolving rather than replacing the system, the identity retained consistency across markets while creating a distinct personality for Belgium.
Partnerships
The visual language extended beyond traditional marketing channels into physical brand experiences. A key activation included a partnership with Jules Destrooper, creating a bespoke biscuit tin, using the adapted visual language to connect the channel with a recognisable piece of local culture.
Results
Following the rebrand on May 5th, BBC Belgium closed the month with a strong 1.30% share in the commercial demo, the channel’s best result since June 2022, and its third-highest share ever. The channel grew by +35% versus April, driven by both an uplift in viewers of +13% and increased viewing time of +12%, with audiences now spending an average of 73 minutes on the channel.
Through extensive research into Belgian Fine Art, Architecture, Fashion, Cuisine, Environment/Landscape, and Contemporary Design, I was charged with developing a locally informed Colour Strategy and Creative Framework, that reinterpreted the existing visual system of pairing British Heritage, with the cultural identity of the new market.
The challenge was not to create a new identity from scratch, but to adapt an existing brand system in a way that felt culturally authentic, while maintaining consistency with the wider BBC Studios portfolio.
The resulting toolkit was deployed across OOH, Social spaces, On-Air, and Partnership Activations, including a co-branded campaign with Jules Destrooper.
