Moo Moo

Liz Keramianakis
Mar 28, 2023
5 min read

Updated: May 5, 2023

A steakhouse with a difference.

Moo Moo is a relatively restaurant franchise that launched in Gauteng in 2010. The brand was created by three people who identified a trend in the market, particularly in the steakhouse segment. They thought it to be stale and monotonous. Apart from the one franchise designed specifically around families with young children, the rest of the restaurants in that segment was almost entirely entirely indistinguishable from the next. They all had serious, pretentious undertones and basically catered to what they describe as 'old men in suits and ties'.

The Moo Moo concept was designed to be an experience unlike anything else that was available at the time. The look and feel of the concept had to tie in with the store design, which had to correspond with the brands tone: cheeky, trendy and serious about only one thing- serving the best meat in the business.

Who is Moo?

When analysing the Moo Moo brand identity characteristics based on the brand identity system outlined by Klopper and North (2011:66) the following is clearly defined:

Brand Vision

From the outset the vision behind creating the brand was to stand out from the out from the crowd. They identified three main areas of focus: Product, Service and Experience.

Product: The goal was to be known as the meat specialists. Their menu doesn't offer seafood, pizza or pasta. They didn't want to be a 'Jack of all Trades', they wanted to master one, which they did. They established their own butchery, where they source their meat from the best abattoirs in the country and age it themselves to ensure a consistently excellent product. This butchery supplies the Moo Moo restaurants exclusively. They committed to using only the best quality ingredients to elevate the quality and taste of each dish.

Service: Moo Moo claims that one of the brand's USP's is their service team. Each person employed to interact directly with a Moo Moo customer oozes about as much personality as the brand does. The Moo Moo vibe and company culture is embodied by people who serve you. Big personalities with a great sense of humour, who know their product and are committed to making sure you leave there with a smile on your face.

Experience: When you sit down inside a Moo Moo store, there is no mistaking it for any other restaurant you've been to before. Beautifully designed stores where even the tiniest detail has been considered and designed to speak to the Moo Moo brand and bring a smile to your face. The menu is in the form of a magazine or a ‘MooGazine’ as its called. Lights in some areas are made from milk pails that hang at staggered heights from the ceiling. The table decor is bright green, fresh grass that instantly draws your mind to a grassy meadow. Cheeky sayings appear on the walls in wooden letters- ‘Red meat is not bad for you. Its blue-green meat thats bad for you.’ and ‘No poem was ever written by a drinker of water.’ to name but a few. The toilets are designed to look like an 'outhouse' on a farm, complete with old fashioned toilets & the sounds of cows mooing away in the distance. Quirky, fun elements designed to make you smile & speaks to the personality of the brand.

Brand Purpose

The aim of the brand was to establish a venue that would appeal to a wider audience than the steakhouse segment was currently serving. As one of the founding partners is a woman, a lot of consideration was given to removing the overtly masculine persona of a steakhouse and creating a more neutral space that could appeal both men and women alike. The purpose was to make people feel comfortable, at ease and happy. allow

Brand Positioning

As the young families and business men were already spoken for, Moo Moo aimed to position themselves to the rest of the middle to higher LSM. Although their price points cater to a very broad demographic, their dedication to using only the best quality ingredients available means that they do cater to a customer that is able to recognise the value of a quality product.

The wines range from well priced for the more budget conscious drinker, to more high end options for the connoisseur who sees the value in an expensive bottle of wine. All their wines are offered by the glass, which allows poeple to be able to enjoy even just one glass of really good wine and not necessarily have to buy an entire bottle. The food menu ranges from street food and light meals, various steak cuts and sizes, to speciality steaks for those with the slightly larger bank balances or more disposable income.

Brand Values

The Moo Moo brand values are outlined in their brand philosophy:

"Have fun" Thats the reason the brand was created in the first place

"Try something new" All wines being available by glass allows you to different wines with each new glass you order.

"If you want it done right, do it yourself." which is why Moo Moo will only stock the meat that comes from their own butchery.

"Fine food and wine should not be reserved for special occasions." They focus on creating a regular customer base that will visit their stores all the time, any time.

Mantra and Tagline

A brands mantra and a tagline is often seen as an interchangeable concept. They way I like to think of it is that the one refers to your 'internal message' and the other to your 'external message'. A brand's mantra is an internal statement that defines a brand's essence. Moo Moo's Mantra is "Great meat, great wine and a great time."

A tagline is an external statement designed to grab the attention of the consumer and convey a brands personality. The Moo Moo tagline is 'Meet & Whine'. It is a clever play on words that hints at their cheeky personality, while also referring to their product offering. ‘Meet & Whine’ and “Meat & Wine” is easily interchangeable when you consider what you do when you go out for a bite with a friend. You meet & then you whine, whether it be about work or your spouse or kids, you generally blow off some steam. And at Moo Moo you can do while your devour a delicious piece of meat & much needed glass of wine.

Image: Food and Home Magazine

www.moo-moo.co.za

Brand Personality

The brand personality is informal, humorous and a little bit sassy. The use of puns, light-hearted banter and tongue-in-cheek humour is injected just about everywhere. There are massive letter boards in the stores with random funny jokes and quotes. The MooGazine menu boasts all sorts of steak and wine puns, cartoons and entertaining antidotes.

This personality also forms part of the brand's verbal identity, which filters through to the copy on their social media posts, responses to customers online and in their advertising. They use a very distinct and unique brand tone.

Instagram: @moomooherd

Their visual identity is reflected in their brand colours which is bight red, white, dark grey & black. The visual elements in the stores are also reflected in their website, advertising & social media. The imaging is crisp, clean & bold. Photographs of the food is bright & striking. It almost always has a dark background that gives it a sleek & modern feel & makes the food visually pop.

These striking visual elements are mirrored in the store’s design. The minute you step through the doors you are greeted by striking, contrasting colours, the most obvious being the bright red floors with the raw brick detail on the edges that give it a very slight farm feel. Dark ceilings & walls give you a similar look & feel that you get from the black backgrounds on the brand imagery. The bars & kitchens are built behind massive wooden slatted structures that create a bold & visually stimulating feature with lit up, raw wood fins that stand out against the dark grey recesses.