5 minBusiness
NYC Taps Branding Firms to Design City-Owned Grocery Stores
New York City's Economic Development Corporation has selected four firms to create the visual identity for five municipal grocery stores, one in each borough, as part of Mayor Zohran Mamdani's $70 million initiative to expand food access.
New York City has selected a team of branding and grocery specialists to design the look and feel of its first municipally owned grocery stores, a signature initiative of Mayor Zohran Mamdani aimed at expanding affordable food access across the five boroughs.
The city's Economic Development Corporation said it had chosen four firms — Gander, Librarie, Noble Signs, and Seven Roots — to develop the brand identity for five forthcoming stores, one in each borough. The selection marks a key step in the NYC Groceries program, which Mamdani campaigned on last year and has since backed with $70 million in capital funding.
Gander, a strategic branding firm known for work with consumer brands such as Graza olive oil and Yellow Bird hot sauce, will lead the project, overseeing research, strategy, naming, and brand development. Partner Mike McVicar described the assignment as a natural fit. «We consider ourselves, for better or worse, grocery store nerds, and probably get way too much enjoyment out of wandering the aisles of grocery stores everywhere we travel,» he said. He added that the top priority is to help make the effort to address food insecurity «as wildly successful as possible» by building a brand that resonates with a diverse city with high standards.
Librarie, a boutique consultancy that has advised brands including Stiller's and Cann, will co-lead on brand positioning, voice, copy, and naming. Fern Diaz of Librarie said the team hopes to transform the language around affordability and abundance from «words that can feel like policy jargon» into something New Yorkers «feel and experience.»
Noble Signs, a creative studio that founded the New York Sign Museum, will consult on city history and culture to ensure the visual assets feel authentic. Seven Roots, an independent grocery design and development firm, will advise on retail operations and integrating the brand into physical stores. It is the only consortium member not based in New York City. Managing partner Heather Lazickas said the stores «will undoubtedly offer valuable lessons and inspiration for communities across the country working to strengthen their food access landscapes.»
The four firms, subject to approval by the NYCEDC Board of Directors, will work with the agency and City Hall to develop the brand identity and other deliverables. The city had sought proposals for brand research, visual identity, private labeling, merchandise, and architecture and engineering collaboration.
«Our municipal grocery stores should be a place every New Yorker recognizes and feels welcome in,» Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice Julie Su said in a statement. «With expertise and experience in branding, city history, and grocery retail, this team will help us deliver stores that make affordable food easy to find in every borough.»
NYCEDC CEO Anthony Shorris called the selection an important step in «creating grocery stores that are welcoming, easy to recognize, and unmistakably New York.»
The first store, a 20,000-square-foot location at the Peninsula in the Bronx, is expected to open by 2027. A second location has been identified for a 9,000-square-foot store in East Harlem. All five stores are expected to be open by the end of Mamdani's first term in 2030.
The branding effort reflects a broader push by the mayor, who has shown a keen eye for visual presentation in politics and government, to ensure that the city-run grocery stores are not only functional but also appealing to residents. A welcoming identity will be one component in turning the municipal markets into a success, alongside operational and affordability goals.
The consortium's work will shape how the stores are perceived and experienced by shoppers, from signage and packaging to the overall atmosphere. As the city moves forward with the project, the firms will collaborate with officials to create a brand that aims to reflect New York's diversity and character while addressing a critical need for accessible, affordable food.
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