Project scope
Naming, Branding, Copywriting, Translation, Photography, Video, Graphic Design, Event Management, PR, Social Media
AccorHotels was opening their first high-end Pullman brand hotel in Japan. They asked Paradigm for help naming and branding the hotel’s two F&B outlets. We also handled event management for a very successful grand opening of the Pullman Tokyo Tamachi hotel. Paradigm is now retained as the Pullman’s creative and PR agency in Japan.
What’s in a name?
First, we needed to come up with a name for the restaurant.
The Pullman team told us that the restaurant would offer freshly prepared Mediterranean-style dishes with a Japanese twist, so we needed to find a unique name that would work well across those diverse cuisines. Following thorough market research and the presentation of a number of possible candidates, we chose the name Kasa.
Kasa, the word for umbrella in Japanese, is an apt choice because the interior decor of the restaurant is inspired by the famous kabuki play Sukeroku. In the play, the eponymous lead character always carries an umbrella. Also, the phonetic equivalent, casa, means home in Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese. This worked well to communicate the Mediterranean aspect.
Next, we needed a name for the bar.
From the ninth floor of the hotel, the stylish rooftop bar overlooks Tokyo’s iconic Yamanote line, the Shinkansen, and a number of other rail tracks below. Pullman’s historic connection to rail transport, and the hotel’s close proximity to Tamachi Station, led us to name the bar Platform 9.
Once the names were in place, we developed unique, stylish identities for each outlet, as well as a wide range of collateral and brand-application guidelines.
Let’s get the party started
On October 4th, we welcomed some 500 guests — from business, media, art, and culture — to the grand opening party. They enjoyed an incredible night of food, entertainment, and art. Pullman Hotels has a serious commitment to embracing exciting new artists as part of their Artnight events. Working with Daniel Rosen and his team at TokyoDex, the renowned artistic duo, WHOLE9, was commissioned to paint an attention-grabbing mural on one of the main walls of Platform 9 during the party.
Press and social media coverage beat the client’s expectations and helped place Pullman Tokyo Tamachi firmly among Tokyo’s best new hotels.
To all the Paradigm team — Thank you! You have wowed them!
Everyone has had nothing but great feedback from the opening party last night! Thank you so much for all you have managed to do under quite a challenging schedule. We look forward to continuing working with you on many exciting projects in the future.
Darren Morrish
General Manager
Pullman Tokyo Tamachi
