Creative Branding & Guidelines

How a Rococo Armchair Gave Birth to Cavalini's branding: Crafting the Identity of a Modern Luxury Brand

There’s something about an antique Rococo-style armchair. The kind you’d find commanding the corners of a grand ballroom—curved wood, delicate carvings, unapologetically ornamental. It doesn’t scream for attention, but you can’t help but look. That’s what luxury should feel like.

When I was brought on to develop the brand identity for Cavalini, I didn’t immediately know we’d end up there. In fact, we tried quite a few directions. At one point we looked into more minimal, contemporary expressions. At another, we explored design languages that were ultra-sleek, almost clinical. But none of it felt right. None of it felt true to what the brand was becoming.

It wasn’t until we stumbled across a reference photo I used at the end of one of the mood boards; it was of one of those old carved chairs, hand-crafted wood, hand-finished inlay, the kind of piece you’d see in a château and not dare sit on—that it clicked. I remembered a few just like it in my grandfather’s home growing up. A piece that was always just as grand as the room that it was in, I remember I used to run from one corner of the grand ballroom of my Grandfathers's home to the other and jump onto these chairs, giving me such a closeup memory of there timeless grandeur. The colossal home my grandfather built is gone now however the set still lives to today, half of it ended up in my mother's home and the other half has found its way all the way in North Carolina in my uncle's house. And I am sure this timeless elegance will live on in the family for generations to come.

That chair became the symbol. It embodied everything we were trying to say with Cavalini: timeless craftsmanship, European heritage, and a kind of romantic formality that’s almost extinct today. It wasn’t just about furniture. It was about reverence for craft.

We built the logo around that chair.

The chair’s silhouette and spirit lived in every decision. The hand-finishing inspired our sketch-style embellishments. We went with a tone that felt like a letter from a designer, rather than a pitch from a company. Intimate. Knowledgeable. Always elegant.

But that clarity didn’t come instantly.

I was brought on to help Cavalini prepare for an important interior design trade show. They needed a presence, and fast. I had three days to develop an entire brand direction from scratch. That meant voice, visuals, tone, concept, tagline, and messaging. No shortcuts.

Once the logo was done, I expanded that first articulation into a comprehensive brand guidelines manual: tone of voice, design system, usage protocols, sample ads, showroom applications, and more. I wanted Cavalini’s guide to be something that would grow with the brand without ever losing its original soul.

Of course, I didn’t arrive at this process by accident. My work in brand building started long before Cavalini. As the Creative Executive Producer at Paramount Hotel, I was known as the “brand guidelines police.” Every piece of collateral, every outlet, every activation had to align. I helped develop the identities for venues like Flashback Speakeasy and Paparazzi Tuscan Restaurant, ensuring they were more than just F&B outlets they were fully realized concepts with distinct personalities.

That experience extended across DAMAC’s larger ecosystem. I was involved in the brand guideline updates for DAMAC Properties themselves making sure legacy met evolution without losing integrity. I also worked on sister properties like Aykon City, and Malibu Lagoon where I created entirely new brand concepts for hospitality and lifestyle spaces. It wasn’t just about logos and colors. It was about story and soul.

What Cavalini reminded me of is that luxury branding can’t be fabricated. It has to be distilled from something already present. That Rococo chair became part of the brand’s DNA. We just hadn’t uncovered it yet. And once we did, everything aligned.

The final brand speaks in a quiet, assured voice. It’s refined but never rigid. Confident but never boastful. Just like the chair.

When I build brands whether for hotels, restaurants, or immersive experiences I never start with the deliverables. I start with the essence. What’s the feeling the brand wants to leave behind? What does it whisper, not shout?

Cavalini whispers craftsmanship.

It whispers obsession.

It whispers heritage reimagined.

And every time someone interacts with the brand be it a catalog, showroom wall, website, or social post they should feel that same quiet grandeur. Just like that chair.