50 Shades of Green
When I think of The Grounds, for myself as a stylist and the colours that our creative team come back to time and time again, green is always the hero. And just a short walk around our Garden tells you why this colour more than any other has become synonymous with The Grounds.
As well as being abundant in all living things that fill our The Grounds of Alexandria site, green is also a big part of our brand. We even use the term ‘Grounds Green’ here amongst the staff – meaning the original and official branding green (no doubt with its own Pantone swatch number). But let’s be honest – there are so many shades of green here at The Grounds, how can we just give just one shade all of the glory!
IT AIN’T EASY BEING (THE RIGHT) GREEN
Here’s a fun green story for ya. Back in 2014 when The Grounds was just a few years old, our takeaway coffee cups were a much softer shade of green than they are now.
So here we were redesigning the takeaway cups – we weren’t changing colours – just ordering some new designs. Somewhere in the mix the wrong green was specified and I remember at the time it was a massive deal. All our staff were upset that the green had changed and it seemed the world was crumbling around us. Where did this ‘kermit’ green come from and how did it fit in with The Grounds? Would coffee ever be the same again? You get the idea.
Soon we were delivered multiple shipping containers filled with kermit-green coffee cups, which thankfully worked just fine. Our plan was simply to “suck it up” with intention to fix the colour for the next batch.
Can you guess what happened next? (If you’ve had a takeaway coffee from us, you probably can!) That’s right – these new bolder kermit-green cups became so popular with our guests. Everyone was Instagramming them and generally #lovingthem so much so that we decided to keep them. What started as an accident prompted an evolution and then a revolution. The people had spoken and the bolder green has taken Alexandria by storm ever since!
SO WHY GREEN
We have an entire rainbow at our disposal but we choose to use this colour for three main reasons:
1. The Grounds is known for greenery. It’s what drove our original vision and transformed it from a concrete car park to the vibrant oasis it is today. Nature’s many shades of green feeds into what we believe The Grounds is all about. We’re built upon memories which involved farms and gardens and beautiful outdoor settings. What better colour to depict the outdoors than green?
2. Green is a creative colour. We like to think we’re a creative bunch – always trying, building, designing and creating new things. And when you’re constantly pushing the creative envelope and doing things that no one has tried before, you want a colour that inherently gives you permission to proceed. Green means go!
3. Green is soothing & calming. Everything we do is about making our guests feel relaxed and at ease. And this is perfect colour to help do that. It’s no coincidence that TV shows have green rooms for their guests to wait in. It oozes calm, relaxed vibes, with more comfort layers than a fancy mattress. While blue can be a bit moody (and make you tired), or red a little uneasy or angry, green can’t help but soothe.
So that’s green, and it’s both verdant and versatile. Just look at the variety of greens on display in Mother Nature’s studio – from the pale green agave and cactus to soft ferns or luscious and glossy dark green citrus trees. At The Grounds, we use these and so many more plants in our styling – but also textiles, paint and printed greens. And we will continue to experiment – sometimes by accident but mostly by design!