HONOLULU – Chaminade University Athletics announced Friday a new branding initiative which includes a new athletics logo that will be in place in time for the 2023-24 academic year.
The new primary logo, which has been in the works since June 2021 and designed by the CLC marketing group in Atlanta, Georgia, is a curved "C," replacing the Silversword plant which had been the symbol of Chaminade Athletics since 2007. A secondary logo was also created which retains the shape of the original plant logo.
CUH Athletics and Chaminade University Communications and Marketing consulted with Honolulu-based Anthology Marketing Group to assist in direction of the logo rebrand with cultural and historical perspectives.
"Our goal was to find the best visual representation of the logo but, ultimately, it has to be genuine to the culture, the place," said CLC senior designer Nathan Webster. "It had to be rooted in this foundation, grounded in Kalaepohaku which is so important to the brand, the university and the people. That's why we worked with their team and the outside team to make it genuine as possible to Honolulu, Hawai'i, and the all the people of the school."
The secondary mark draws inspiration from the triangle which represents the island of O'ahu and, specifically, Kalaepohaku, the hill on which the Chaminade campus resides, with its literal translation being "the stone promontory." Native Hawaiians held high reverence for the rocks as it contained the life force of powerful deities and were to be respected. The logo also displays the five points of Marianist values as sunbeams and the base of the hill.
Prior to the arrival of Westerners in the late 1700s, Kalaepohaku was of great cultural importance with many heiau built throughout the hillside. As Western influence spread in the 1800s, Kalaepohaku became a center point of Catholicism on the island, where it remains to this day.
"I'm ecstatic," men's basketball head coach Eric Bovaird said. "It's a fabulous design and it'll add a lot of excitement to Chaminade."
"We've all been really looking forward to a refreshed Chaminade Athletics branding and we want to thank all the "lau lima" or many hands that were involved in this process," volleyball head coach Kahala Kabalis Hoke said. "We're excited to promote our new look and represent our university with pride."
The new branding will be in use for all 12 Silversword athletic programs starting in the fall of 2023.
