Creating a visual identity for the UK’s first Australian-style sushi brand, Rolled

You probably know that me&u has hospitality’s best CRM, Connect, engineered to automate personalised emails and SMS to your guests based on what they like to order, how often they visit your venue, and how recently they popped in.

But did you know me&u also has an in-house creative and digital agency so you don’t have to worry about your marketing?

&studio is a team of hospitality marketing experts dedicated to serving the industry and we recently worked with the UK's first Australian-style sushi brand, Rolled, to develop their visual identity before their Manchester launch.

We sat down with Adam Miller (Founder) and his brother JJ (Marketing Director) about the Rolled origin story and how &studio brought their vision to life.

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The UK's first Australian-style sushi brand

“The story starts almost 10 years ago when I first went to Japan,” Adam said. 

“I was there on exchange and I had this weird moment where I realised that there were no hand rolls, which are super, super popular in Australia. Like, when you think of sushi in Australia, it's just hand rolls. I remember this distinct moment realising that they just weren't in Japan. 

“I didn't do too much with that information, then fast forward a few years in the UK - I moved here for work. It was at that moment that I realised how profound an impact they had. It's the sort of thing you just have for lunch so frequently in Australia and not having that option here actually created this void. 

“Nine out of 10 Australians do not realise that sushi hand rolls were invented in Australia in the mid to late 90s and then really popularised in the early 2000s as some of the big chains became ubiquitous.

“I just decided this kind of feels like my calling and I would love to introduce this to the UK. 

I think it can be the biggest sushi brand in the country.”

Enter JJ, who flew from Australia to the UK to join Adam to get Rolled rolling.

“I first met Adam in 1999,” JJ said. “I just had my second birthday, it was a pretty crucial time in my life and we've been sort of working together ever since. We happen to share the same surname as well.” (Adam: “His mum is also my mum.”)

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The importance of nailing a first-mover brand

“Bringing a product to the market that is the first of its kind, it's crucial that we not only educate but really nail the things that we want to include in the brand, like quality and consistency and fun,” JJ said. “Really create a brand that is not only recognisable, but people can really feel like they relate with.”

Enter &studio.

“That brand really needed some love and care from a professional and from an agency that understands the industry. 

“We came to &studio because they're experts at hospitality and have that experience from Australia to the UK, to the US and beyond. Dissect it first and then build and expand on it, which they've done brilliantly. To create more assets, give the brand more flexibility and give us the tools to go and, and expand on that thereafter as well. 

“I've seen Anais’ work prior to engaging with her, so I felt super comfortable knowing that this is their bread and butter. The process is as important to me as the outcome.

“There's some kind of bond that can be created with customers and we can build a brand that people identify with and want to support and grow. And so that's why the brand is such a big part of it. If we don't get that right, then we don't prove out the concept. We can't grow - we're not a business.”

“They know the product but they wanna understand what we wanna educate the market on and then giving us the tool kit to go and do that.

“It's all been done relatively quickly as well. Progress every single week and often it's multiple times a week. 

“They demonstrate that understanding and then take it and use it to achieve what we're all trying to achieve. And Anais and the team in general have done an excellent job with that.”

Want &studio to handle your email marketing, social media, or digital marketing? Get in touch here.