Fintech
Koto promotes the youth-oriented fintech brand with super colorful Gen-Z images
In the midst of a cost of living crisis, many people are looking for ways to further spend their money. Enter Fluz, a collaborative earning app that amplifies spending power by offering cashback on everyday purchases.
To help spread their message far and wide, Fluz recently partnered with Kotoa brand and digital agency with studios in Berlin, London, Los Angeles, New York and Sydney, to create a new brand to fuel Fluz’s expansion.
The new branding extends across marketing initiatives, websites and product interactions and revolves around the core concept: “Fluz lets you maximize your money.” It is anchored in a mindset dubbed “Life on Max,” which aims to leverage money to its fullest potential.
The short
Founded in 2018 in New York, Fluz is a collaborative earning app that maximizes your financial potential. It offers cashback on everyday expenses, encourages earning with friends and facilitates secure payments.
By focusing on transparency and accessibility, the platform helps eliminate hidden fees and offers various ways to spend your money. Key features include 1.5% cash back with Mastercard, secure transactions, and inclusive accessibility. The company aims to ensure that users have equal opportunities to maximize their earnings.
Koto’s extensive rebranding effort was fueled by Fluz’s strategic shift toward appealing to a youthful 18- to 32-year-old demographic. This is based on the fundamental belief that Fluz enables young people to maximize their money.
The idea was to challenge the common belief that the best financial opportunities are reserved only for those with large bank balances. Instead, the new identity uses bold, explosive, super-colorful imagery to draw Gen Z users into a vibrant, inclusive universe where financial transactions and community engagement blend seamlessly.
Typography and colors
At the heart of the new identity is bold and confident branding. Designed by Koto to exude character and instant recognition, it serves as a powerful entry point into the world of Fluz, establishing the brand’s core values at first glance.
Typographically, the identity uses the playful Greed Condensed Semibold as the primary typeface for headlines, subheads, and calls to action. Additionally, Greed Condensed Semibold offers an “enhanced” version, making Fluz communications more dynamic and engaging across key touchpoints. Meanwhile, the secondary typeface, Area, prioritizes readability, making it suitable for body copy and tags, ensuring clarity and consistency across all communications.
Fluz’s color palette features ethereal tones contrasted with dark colors, providing a solid foundation for text readability and visual impact. The secondary palette, however, introduces three types of gradients (Calm, Expressive and Max) designed to enhance high-energy moments.
Illustration and photography
The illustration serves as a gateway to Fluz’s surreal universe, where everyday objects and scenes take on a fantastical quality. At its core is an eclectic mix of items that reflect the significant purchasing power that Fluz unlocks for its users.
Photography is also at the heart of the Fluz brand, which celebrates its diverse community and business partners, connecting fantastical worlds with recognizable reality. To capture the essence of empowerment and motivation, Fluz showcases both its users and businesses on the platform.
Real individuals and companies are portrayed in captivating settings, in tune with the aspirations of the audience. By embracing these elements, Fluz’s subworlds come to life as vibrant, immersive experiences, allowing users to embark on a journey of financial empowerment and endless possibilities.
“This identity perfectly embodies a brand that truly lives by its vision, highlighted by three essential elements that ensure its lasting impact,” says Arthur Foliard, creative director of Koto. “First, consistency: consistently and respectfully using brand assets throughout, which has been done through our deep collaboration with the founder and his team. Second, flexibility: ensuring that every touch point and every communication element feels unique Fluz. Third, distinctiveness means staying true to the original vision and making brand and business decisions in line with it.”
“Koto’s transformative work on our product positioning has been remarkable and has deeply resonated with Fluz’s core Gen Z audience,” adds Fluz founder and CEO Maurice Harary. “Their innovative approach has not only strengthened our brand in the cashback space, but has also strengthened our connection with this primary demographic.
“This collaboration with Koto has been an extraordinary journey of creativity and strategic planning,” he adds. “Months of dedication and their unrivaled creative genius have led to results that exceed all expectations. I feel privileged to have witnessed firsthand the incredible impact of their work. It extends beyond simple visual aspects to encompass an identity of truly authentic and distinctive brand.”