Smith St Bistrot
Brand Identity & Creative Direction
Smith St Bistrot is a high-end French restaurant on Smith Street, Collingwood. Merging 1920s Parisian chic with one of Melbourne’s edgiest suburbs. From its opening in February 2022 through to March 2025, as the Senior Group Designer at the Scott Pickett Group, I led the brand identity and creative direction across print, menus, campaigns and signage, creating a visual world that complements the venue's award-winning interiors and a dining experience that is both atmospheric and understated.
Art Direction
Brand Identity
Brand Systems
Creative Direction
Event Design
Film Photography
Graphic Design
Illustration
Interiors
Materials Selection
Menu Design
Object Design
Signage & Wayfinding
Social Media
Uniforming
Videography
Website Design & UI
ADDITIONAL PROJECT CREDITS
Savi Communications (Design)
Anthology Studio (Interiors)
AstroSigns (Signwriting)
CWF (Fabrication)
MenuCorp (Menu Covers)
Alessandro Squadrito (Digital Photography)
Marek Reid (Web Development)
Strategic positioning for Le Bistrot was developed by Savi Communications, who established an initial concept drawing on Parisian Art Nouveau and Gothic architectural references. This approach informed the visual language and brand across all physical and digital touchpoints as the restaurant grew.
Working as the Senior Group Designer at the Scott Pickett Group, I led the execution and evolution of the Smith St Bistrot brand from launch in 2022, through to 2025 – translating Savi’s initial framework into a fully realised, living and breathing identity system.
The visual language was shaped through typography, composition and materiality, referencing historic French signage, poster design and café culture without leaning on cliches. Burgundy and warm neutral tones were paired with typographic treatments that brought together old-world elegance and contemporary simplicity, while printed matter embraced this same texture and detail.
Close collaboration with interior architects, industrial designers and fabricators ensured the brand and spatial experience evolved together – allowing menus, signage, environmental graphics and physical brand touchpoints to feel truly embedded rather than applied. The tone of voice remained deliberately laissez-faire, expressed through 35mm snapshot photography, archival French video, and loose illustration.
The resulting identity established Smith St Bistrot as a confident, truly atmospheric destination – one that feels transportive but truly grounded in its setting on Smith St, Collingwood. Over multiple years of operation, the brand system proved flexible and enduring, supporting seasonal campaigns, special events, evolving menus and a growing digital presence without losing its core character.