Rebranding of the Basel Historical Museum: Suan Sets a New Standard
The Basel-based branding and design agency Suan developed the new brand identity for the Basel Historical Museum. Since May 19, 2026, the HMB has been presenting itself in a fresh, contemporary, and clear way with a distinctive logo system and the brand essence «A Place for All Times.».
Rebranding of the Basel Historical Museum: Suan Sets a New Standard
The rebranding of the Historisches Museum Basel is official: As of May 19, 2026, the HMB is launching a new brand identity, which the Basel-based branding and design agency Suan spent more than a year developing. The goal of this comprehensive project was to highlight the museum’s strategic development and reposition the HMB as a contemporary, relevant cultural institution.
At the heart of the jointly developed brand strategy is the positioning of the HMB as a vibrant place of dialogue that brings history to life and connects the past with the present and the future. This gave rise to the new brand essence: «A place for all times.».
A distinctive logo system with high brand recognition
At the heart of the new identity is the logo system. According to Suan, the return to the abbreviation «HMB» has created a distinctive word mark that clearly stands out in the Basel museum context and gives the museum a modern and self-assured image. The umbrella brand is complemented by a flexible sub-logo system for the three venues: Barfüsserkirche, Musikmuseum, and Haus zum Kirschgarten. By selectively highlighting individual letters, each venue is given its own identity within a consistent overall system.
Strategic Design Across All Channels
The new design system was deliberately kept minimal and developed to be flexible. The typography, color palette, and layout system are intended to create a strong visual identity while enabling clear, target-audience-specific communication. In addition to the visual design, Suan worked with HMB to develop the communicative foundation for future messaging. Based on personas and brand stories, a new communication and web structure was created to make content clearer, more relevant, and easier to find.
The new brand identity is being implemented in collaboration with the museum’s in-house marketing and graphic design team across all channels—from the website to social media and print media, as well as signage and the annual report.
Rebranding the Basel Historical Museum: More Than Just a New Look
For Suan, the project exemplifies the importance of strategic brand management in the cultural sector. André Konrad, Managing Partner at Suan, puts it this way: «With its new brand identity, the HMB is sending a clear message far beyond the canton’s borders. The brand now makes as striking an impression as the location of its main building and confidently demonstrates what it stands for: a place for all times.»
For more information about the project, visit Suan's project page: https://www.suan.ch/neuigkeiten/Rebranding-Historisches-Museum-Basel.html
Person in charge at the Basel Historical Museum: Bettina Lotz, Marc Zehntner, Micha Jakob Gasser, Delia Sieber, Patricia Bülhoff, Patrick Moser, Janine Meier, Noelia Berberat, Manuela Frey. Contact at Suan Branding: André Konrad (Managing Partner), Susanne Hartmann, Déborah Mayer, Domenico Bellantuono, Erica David. Programming: Open Interactive; Text: Textair.
