The Northside Social.
The Kent had lost its way. It sat somewhere between a restaurant and a pub, and that made it hard for people to understand how to use it. Some spaces weren’t being activated, some weren’t that desirable to spend time in, and the service model felt more restaurant than local pub.
It had become popular for cheap meals, but that wasn’t a sustainable position. There was little connection to the local community, not much local identity and the venue wasn’t really reflecting what people now expect from a modern Melbourne pub.
The opportunity was bigger than giving the place a new look. The new owners wanted an elevated pub experience that locals could make their own. Somewhere you could watch the footy, catch up with friends, have a coffee, bring the family, use a room for a club or group, celebrate a milestone birthday or even get married.
One pub. Different occasions.
Carlton North isn’t short of good pubs, restaurants and cafés. The audience is broad, but the expectations are surprisingly consistent.
People want quality without formality. Young professionals want great food, interesting drinks and atmosphere. Long-time locals want familiarity, consistency and somewhere they feel comfortable coming back to. Couples and families want something elevated, but not so cool or precious that they feel like they’re intruding.
A local woman summed it up beautifully when she told me what she liked about the new Kent. Her kids could eat, the teenagers had room, she could catch up with friends, and nobody felt like they were getting in anybody else’s way. It didn’t need to be the coolest pub in Melbourne. It needed to be a pub Carlton North could actually use.
So the real question became:
What reason are we giving people to come out?
Our research showed that pub visits were increasingly experience-led first, drinks-led second and food-led third. The Kent couldn’t rely on lunch and dinner alone. The venue itself needed to become part of the reason people came.
There needed to be talking points. Different spaces. Different experiences. Reasons to stay longer and reasons to bring somebody else next time. We also saw an opportunity in changing dayparts. People were heading to pubs earlier and becoming more interested in casual afternoon drinks, snacks and lighter occasions. Get someone in for a drink and a snack and they may stay for another drink, then dinner.
That can become a more valuable customer than somebody who arrives for a meal and leaves. So instead of building The Kent around two traditional meal periods, we started thinking about how it could work from coffee through to late night.
That thinking eventually became:
The Northside Social. A place locals could make their own.
The Northside Social wasn’t just a line. It became a way of thinking about the whole business. The ambition was to create Carlton North’s most cherished local venue.
A neighbourhood pub that gets its locals. Somewhere you can brunch, lunch, gather, dine, drink and connect from morning through to late night. That meant different spaces needed to support different occasions. Someone could be having steak and wine in the dining room while locals watched the footy in the public bar. Friends could be catching up outside after work while a 30th birthday was happening upstairs.
The brand needed to feel grounded, warm, real, neighbourly, connected, heritage-led and foodie. Not a trendy concept dropped into Carlton North. Something that felt as though it had always belonged there.
We immersed ourselves in the pub, its history, Carlton North, the local community, customer behaviour, the competitive landscape and hospitality trends here and overseas. What was great? What could The Kent learn from? What was remarkable about the area? Who lived here? What stories were already sitting in the neighbourhood? From there we built the commercial position, brand territory and identity around the idea of The Northside Social.
The visual language needed to balance a few things at once. Elevated, but not precious. Contemporary, but not trendy for trend’s sake. Foodie, but still unmistakably a pub. Heritage, without becoming nostalgic. Stylish, without excluding locals or families.
Carlton’s European food culture, architecture and history gave us plenty to work with. The identity became a system that could stretch across signage, menus, coasters, uniforms, windows, wayfinding, social, reels, photography, functions, local sporting communications and everything else the business needed to do.
Once we had the brand, we got curious about how it could live in the physical space. The owners then asked us to lead the design direction of the build.
We’re not architects, and we didn’t pretend to be. Our role was to give the brand physical form and work closely with RM Sitecare, suppliers and trades to make it happen. The guiding thought was simple:
It should feel like we peeled back the walls and discovered The Kent underneath.
Not like someone had dropped a new hospitality concept into an old pub. That meant addressing some very practical problems. The dining room was acoustically loud, so acoustic panelling was introduced. The bar wasn’t really encouraging people to approach it, so we made it feel more like a pub again. The staircase was dark and uninviting, making upstairs feel almost off-limits. We lightened it, improved the wayfinding and made the journey upstairs feel deliberate. A tired rooftop terrace became a warm Mediterranean courtyard.
Materials were chosen for warmth, durability and connection to Carlton. Timber, chocolate, cinnamon and salmon tones. Marble references, warm lighting, rounded forms, vintage European food and drink artwork, historical Carlton photography. Carpet tiles that could be replaced practically over time. A café zone that could behave differently from the bar during the day. Every choice had a job to do.
The clearest examples of the strategy are often the simplest. A dark staircase became an invitation to go upstairs. An underused terrace became somewhere people wanted to spend time. The dining room became warmer, quieter and more comfortable. The public bar became somewhere you actually wanted to walk up and order a drink. The different rooms began to tell people how they could use them without needing to explain it.
The Kent reopened in November 2025. The launch wasn’t just about unveiling a new identity and renovated venue. People needed to understand that this was a different Kent.
A place to stay longer, use differently. A place that could become part of their week.
The launch was supported through photography, content, social, PR, local media, radio, Google and the website. We built the systems around the brand so awareness had somewhere to go. The website became a booking and discovery tool. Photography finally showed the venue, food and atmosphere the way we had intended. Social and content kept the brand active. PR, Triple R and the Today Show helped introduce the new Kent beyond its existing audience.
Opening the doors was never the finish line. The next job was to keep giving people reasons to come back. The Kent began building a rhythm of offers, events and programming around how locals actually wanted to use the pub. Locals Night. Trivia. Pie Night. Steak Day. Happy Hour. Mother’s Day. Functions. Sport. Community activity.
Photography, social, EDM, Google, the website and paid media all became part of the same system. The brand stopped being something sitting in a guideline and started becoming something people could experience repeatedly. That is where a brand starts creating commercial value.
It’s important for us to acknowledge and recognise that where we live, work and play is on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation. We respect and honour Elders, past, present and future, and acknowledge their Native Title rights to Country, which holds the stories, traditions and living culture of Wurundjeri people.
