Khaore is a new brand of fine leather luxury goods produced in limited editions. Conceived as “art with utility,” the handbags and other accessories reinterpret mundane, everyday objects in striking sculptural forms with exquisite details. Pentagram has designed a brand identity for the label that expresses its unique proposition.

Co-founded by Raiheth Rawla and Wei Hung Chen, two recent graduates from Parsons School of Design, Khaore seeks to redefine the value of owning an item, creating accessories that feel one-of-a-kind and reflect a distinct artistic vision. The first collection, Roadside, is inspired by objects––traffic cones, jute baskets and stacked pots––found on the streets of New York and India, where Rawla grew up. The company uses ethical materials and processes, and all of the handbags are manufactured locally in New York and India.

The brand identity captures the Khaore concept with customized typography that’s both refined and gestural. For the logotype, the Pentagram designers reinterpreted the classic serif typeface Caslon with contemporary elements including angled curves and radical cuts that echo forms in the handbag designs. At first glance, the logo appears elegant and polished; a closer look reveals the rigorous, idiosyncratic details. 

The identity’s understated elegance extends to applications, which employ a clean aesthetic and subtle use of color. Rawla returned to her native India to photograph the brand’s first campaign, which pictures the Roadside collection alongside some of their original inspirations, lending a sense of cultural context. The line was introduced with a pop-up exhibition in Soho in fall 2017, and a second collection will launch in summer 2018.