The Semiotics of Business Signage: How Typography is Used in Impoverished and Deprived Areas of New Zealand

Abstract

There is no disputing the fact that Auckland Central Business District (C.B.D) is well positioned within the multinational corporate world community. Walking through the streets of Auckland’s C.B.D one could be anywhere throughout the world as the corporate branding of the world famous companies within the C.B.D are indicative to each other regardless of the country. I work in Auckland’s C.B.D area and on my to work each morning I travel through one of New Zealand poorest areas of NZ, Otara, South Auckland, which has a large percentage of Pacifica residents and has one of the highest unemployment figures in NZ. It is travelling through this town on a daily bases that made me notice how the local businesses are designing and displaying their signage within this small community town and how it has become a synonymous branding, not on a corporate level but more of a community level and one that sits comfortably with the local people. The aim in this paper is to document and examine examples of signage from these poor areas of South Auckland and to point out the subtleties or difference’s from these; in most cases hand produced signage, which is functional but lacks in the traditional form of typographical design, which is well documented in the corporate world. This research project will outline some of the findings that I have encountered on my journey and how important it is to maintain a sense of community within areas such as these.