The Surry is a boutique development of 24 apartments by Cadmium Property in Surry Hills. Our target objective was to create a typeface for the marketing campaign that defied trends and was timeless yet cool. The target audience was ‘the in-crowd’, the movers and shakers of Sydney, people who already know and love Surry Hills, and have discerning taste.

As a whole the campaign revealed an insider’s view of Surry Hills, showcasing a vision of inner-city living that is unapologetically Surry Hills cool; this is reflected in the edgy yet sophisticated typography. The design was inspired by the brutalist architecture of the building which is strong and bold on the outside, quiet on the inside, with a raw and curated aesthetic. Gritty and unconventional, like the people of Surry Hills, the type echoes the tiles that were used on the outside of the building.

The typography was a key element of the campaign and drew all the other creative constituents together. The launch of The Surry was a huge success with 50% of apartments sold in one morning. Twelve of the 24 apartments were purchased by the target market of local buyers. The launch also saw a number of premium apartments selling for an impressive price point.