Brand identity

I helped reshape GDMI’s image into something sharper and more readable: a disciplined brand voice, a cleaner system, and a custom stencil type built from Eurostile—Italian modernism, reinterpreted with an “army” edge.

I helped reshape GDMI’s image into something sharper and more readable: a disciplined brand voice, a cleaner system, and a custom stencil type built from Eurostile—Italian modernism, reinterpreted with an “army” edge.

I helped reshape GDMI’s image into something sharper and more readable: a disciplined brand voice, a cleaner system, and a custom stencil type built from Eurostile—Italian modernism, reinterpreted with an “army” edge.

Nov 2023

IT

Identity Refresh

Ginnastica Dinamica Militare Italiana is a training discipline born in Italy in 2013, built around bodyweight fundamentals and a strong group identity. The way they describe themselves is very clear: real effort, no “easy shortcuts,” and a sense of shared progression instead of individual performance.
Together with Nicolò Botticini, I worked on a rebrand that could translate that mindset into a stronger public image—aligning values, strategy, and tone of voice, then turning it into an identity that feels minimal, modern, and still true to the discipline.

Ginnastica Dinamica Militare Italiana is a training discipline born in Italy in 2013, built around bodyweight fundamentals and a strong group identity. The way they describe themselves is very clear: real effort, no “easy shortcuts,” and a sense of shared progression instead of individual performance.
Together with Nicolò Botticini, I worked on a rebrand that could translate that mindset into a stronger public image—aligning values, strategy, and tone of voice, then turning it into an identity that feels minimal, modern, and still true to the discipline.

Strategy first: align what the brand is with what it shows

Before touching design, we clarified the brand’s pillars: discipline, community, concreteness, and a training approach that avoids unnecessary “fitness theatre.” From there, we tightened the tone of voice so it could stay direct and motivating without becoming aggressive.

The key design move: a custom typographic voice

The most distinctive part of the work is the type direction. I started from Eurostile, a geometric sans-serif created by Italian designer Aldo Novarese (released in 1962) and historically associated with technical, modern, forward-looking design.
Then I pushed it into a stencil interpretation—more “military”, more utilitarian—so the typography could carry both sides of GDMI:

  • the Italian design/modernism side (clean, minimal, structured),

  • the training/discipline side (stencil logic, functional impact).

In practice, the type becomes the bridge between “precision” and “grit,” without needing extra decorative elements.

Building a system that stays accessible

A disciplined brand can still be readable and welcoming. The visual language was developed to be:

  • simple to apply across touchpoints,

  • clear in hierarchy (information first),

  • flexible enough for daily communication and training contexts.

My role

I worked as creative director across the rebrand, from strategic alignment to identity direction and control of outputs—making sure the brand story, the tone, and the visual system all supported the same message.

What I like about this project is that the concept is not “graphic.” It’s real: a discipline built on effort and unity. The rebrand was about translating that truth into a sharper identity—cleaner, more coherent, and memorable—using typography as the core signature: Eurostile’s Italian modernism, rebuilt into a stencil voice that fits GDMI’s DNA.

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